I am sure we were told that really it was Starmer just playing 4d chess with Commonwealth leaders and it would all be forgotten and nothing more would be ever heard of this ever again.
Chagos was just the beginning. Utterly barmy.
It's the Telegraph - do we have a reliable source?
Exactly what I thought when I saw the original 'I am in the cult' tweet.
Suspect all is not well behind the scenes...
Bill Kristol @BillKristol · 1h Elon’s desperate. He knows that Trump knows that Elon’s undercutting him and damaging him.
And Elon’s profession of love won’t save him.
Musk is useful, but how much does Trump actually need him? It's not like he will suddenly turn in to a powerful opponent of Trump's if he gets cut down to size.
I suspect it is not Trump but Vance who is opposed to Musk, and mainstream Republicans who are nervous of what he is doing. Permanent revolution is not why they entered politics.
In all seriousness... what is a "mainstream" Republican? The country-club Republicans were thrown out and the Big Business Republicans bent the knee and kissed the ring in minutes. The MAGA Republicans own the party now. Did you mean mainstream Republican *voters* ?
Mainstream Republicans who may be cowed by MAGA, who may even support Trump as a means of getting into power, but who are holding their noses because they do not support all of his policies, insofar as he has very many of them, and who look aghast at Project 2025 and Vance and especially Elon Musk.
If you want a domestic parallel, there were lots of Conservatives who did not support Boris and Dominic Cummings, except to get elected, and nor was there a strong policy link between Boris himself and Cummings.
Such individuals are often called “loyalists” and back “their” party no matter the leader or the policies. We have examples on here, I used to be like that.
As to what the Republicans will look like after Trump, I’ve no clue. Here, the Conservatives are just seven months on from the biggest defeat in their history - what they will become in the months and years ahead is unfathomable.
1 shot dead by a cop 2 arrested for soliciting sex with a minor 1 arrested with child sexual abuse material 1 arrested on federal gun charges 1 arrested on vehicular manslaughter (killing someone while drunk driving) 7 more arrested for unknown reasons
Although unless you benchmark against average Americans of their age, sex and class then it’s a meaningless list
It's amazing how much credence folk give to a Telegraph hatchet job on Labour - they're two a penny. Labour won't agree to paying any reparations. People may not like Starmer or Lammy, but they're not mad.
Cheaper China e-bikes 'kick in teeth' for UK firms
A government decision to scrap tariffs on Chinese e-bikes coming into the UK has been described as a "kick in the teeth for British manufacturing". Border taxes were imposed on Chinese e-bikes following Brexit, keeping the UK in line with the EU, but the Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds has accepted a recommendation to lift them on non-folding e-bikes from Friday.
I watched Hercules with Dwayne 'The Rock' on TV the other day. I was expecting it to be mindless action and pretty bad, and he's such a cheeseball, but I came away thinking it was really very good. The idea of Hercules being a bit of a clapped out old stager was a very original theme. The battle scenes were very riveting - one really wanted the heroes to win. 7.5/10, give it a chance.
We know you are a fan of clapped out old stagers already…
More than 100,000 new homes will be built on the highest-risk flood zones in England in the next five years as part of the government’s push for 1.5m extra properties by the end of this parliament, Guardian analysis suggests.
I am sure we were told that really it was Starmer just playing 4d chess with Commonwealth leaders and it would all be forgotten and nothing more would be ever heard of this ever again.
Chagos was just the beginning. Utterly barmy.
It's the Telegraph - do we have a reliable source?
From the same article
A Foreign Office spokesman said there were no plans for a ministerial meeting and no date set for a UK-Caricom meeting.
The spokesman said: “The Government’s position on this issue has not changed – we do not pay reparations.
Andrew Lilico @andrew_lilico · 1m To agree to a single penny of slavery reparations would be to disown & dishonour one of history's greatest acts of collective virtue, spitting on the graves of all those who campaigned, sailed, fought & died suppressing the slave trade, earning contempt from friend & foe alike.
I see Downing Street has been swift to put out a statement there will be no reparations this evening
Why meet then?
Because the UK government signed up to discuss the issue.
*Fucking* *Idiots*
It’s not that difficult to say no to these nations. They have no real way to force us to pay a penny. If we pay it is because of politicians wanting to burnish their halos and grandstand on the world stage. As well as MPs who formerly workers for the charities and NGOs who will be involved in managing these reparations.
Barbados alone wants several trillion pounds. Charities and NGOs favour reparations too as they will be the ones to help ‘manage’ the process. Hence the recent Oxfam report which demanded reparations for India.
It's amazing how much credence folk give to a Telegraph hatchet job on Labour - they're two a penny. Labour won't agree to paying any reparations. People may not like Starmer or Lammy, but they're not mad.
What? Starmer himself agreed that there needed to be a serious discussion about it.
Towards the end of the Telegraph hatchet job linked to: At the summit, Sir Keir resisted pressure from member states to prioritise putting reparations on the agenda. Downing Street said that the UK would reject calls for reparations, and would not be issuing an apology for Britain’s role in the slave trade.
He went to the summit with a red line of not agreeing to anything...yet here we are now in discussions (which was reported as a fudge that wouldn't see the light of day anytime soon).
The UK doesn't have the money so won't be paying the money being asked for, but terrible politics now means they will regularly have these meetings and government have to try and explain to people yeah, but no, but yeah, giving opposition parties easy attack points.
Also, the government keep giving in on every negotiation they have got involved in. Public Sector workers, here have even more than you asked for, no strings attached, no modernisation, no efficiency savings, Chagos Islands, oh we will make it inflation linked making it twice as expensive, ...
US President Donald Trump has said he is revoking Joe Biden's security clearance and access to daily intelligence briefings, after his predecessor did the same to him four years ago.
"There is no need for Joe Biden to continue receiving access to classified information," Trump wrote in a post on his Truth Social platform. "JOE, YOU'RE FIRED," the Republican added in a reference to his catchphrase on the reality TV show The Apprentice.
On this one Trump is probably right for the wrong motivation, Biden isn't mentally capable of taking onboard daily intelligence briefings.
The article does make that point.
He said Biden "could not be trusted with sensitive information", citing a justice department inquiry into the Democrat's storage of classified files, which concluded that while there was no need to press criminal charges, Biden had a poor memory.
Pierre must be super pissed, years of work undone.
The voting intention is in fact Con 40% to Liberal 34%. Most polling still points to a big Conservative lead.
... but once Carney becomes leader the Liberals will be edging ahead.
Justin's played a blinder.
Feels like it would be a rare occurence of swapping out the Leader actually working, and would suggest it really was Trudeau wearing out his welcome which was the biggest problem.
Worked for Labour in New Zealand when they dumped Andrew Little for Jacinda Ardern - Kiwis are surprised when I tell them how much we all admire Jacinda on PB.
Cheaper China e-bikes 'kick in teeth' for UK firms
A government decision to scrap tariffs on Chinese e-bikes coming into the UK has been described as a "kick in the teeth for British manufacturing". Border taxes were imposed on Chinese e-bikes following Brexit, keeping the UK in line with the EU, but the Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds has accepted a recommendation to lift them on non-folding e-bikes from Friday.
Well, I've been in A&E for 7 hours with a suspected blood clot in my leg. Only another 2-3 hours to go. Apparently. Sitting this long will probably have given me one by now.
Then a dentist's appointment at 11.
My choice of book to read during this dreary night was about the Hundred Years War, which with its discussions of interminable sieges seems grimly appropriate.
Now onto Joan of Arc .....
People waiting were very well behaved though, apart from one man snoring loudly. Bad enough when Husband does it. But a strange man doing it is a bit much ....
Cheaper China e-bikes 'kick in teeth' for UK firms
A government decision to scrap tariffs on Chinese e-bikes coming into the UK has been described as a "kick in the teeth for British manufacturing". Border taxes were imposed on Chinese e-bikes following Brexit, keeping the UK in line with the EU, but the Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds has accepted a recommendation to lift them on non-folding e-bikes from Friday.
Non-folding presumably to protect a single british firm?
You think?
(Protecting Brompton is stupid, fwiw. I have two and love them both, but they should compete on quality and innovation. Not be protected as some local champion.)
Well, I've been in A&E for 7 hours with a suspected blood clot in my leg. Only another 2-3 hours to go. Apparently. Sitting this long will probably have given me one by now.
Then a dentist's appointment at 11.
My choice of book to read during this dreary night was about the Hundred Years War, which with its discussions of interminable sieges seems grimly appropriate.
Now onto Joan of Arc .....
People waiting were very well behaved though, apart from one man snoring loudly. Bad enough when Husband does it. But a strange man doing it is a bit much ....
Gosh, sorry to hear this. Hoping it's not as serious as it sounds.
Well, I've been in A&E for 7 hours with a suspected blood clot in my leg. Only another 2-3 hours to go. Apparently. Sitting this long will probably have given me one by now.
Then a dentist's appointment at 11.
My choice of book to read during this dreary night was about the Hundred Years War, which with its discussions of interminable sieges seems grimly appropriate.
Now onto Joan of Arc .....
People waiting were very well behaved though, apart from one man snoring loudly. Bad enough when Husband does it. But a strange man doing it is a bit much ....
US President Donald Trump has said he is revoking Joe Biden's security clearance and access to daily intelligence briefings, after his predecessor did the same to him four years ago.
"There is no need for Joe Biden to continue receiving access to classified information," Trump wrote in a post on his Truth Social platform. "JOE, YOU'RE FIRED," the Republican added in a reference to his catchphrase on the reality TV show The Apprentice.
On this one Trump is probably right for the wrong motivation, Biden isn't mentally capable of taking onboard daily intelligence briefings.
The article does make that point.
He said Biden "could not be trusted with sensitive information", citing a justice department inquiry into the Democrat's storage of classified files, which concluded that while there was no need to press criminal charges, Biden had a poor memory.
Donald Trump making that statement, based on a claim made and refuted by an attorney who was a close ally of his, when he openly and repeatedly stole classified information and is clearly suffering from very advanced mental decline, is however both richly ironic and very disturbing.
1 shot dead by a cop 2 arrested for soliciting sex with a minor 1 arrested with child sexual abuse material 1 arrested on federal gun charges 1 arrested on vehicular manslaughter (killing someone while drunk driving) 7 more arrested for unknown reasons
Although unless you benchmark against average Americans of their age, sex and class then it’s a meaningless list
I hope the number of 30 year olds who solicit sex with a minor is relatively small.
Cheaper China e-bikes 'kick in teeth' for UK firms
A government decision to scrap tariffs on Chinese e-bikes coming into the UK has been described as a "kick in the teeth for British manufacturing". Border taxes were imposed on Chinese e-bikes following Brexit, keeping the UK in line with the EU, but the Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds has accepted a recommendation to lift them on non-folding e-bikes from Friday.
Non-folding presumably to protect a single british firm?
You think?
(Protecting Brompton is stupid, fwiw. I have two and love them both, but they should compete on quality and innovation. Not be protected as some local champion.)
Also, how price sensitive are Brompton customers to cheaper alternatives? I naively would have thought not that much if you are happy to pay £2k on a bike.
Well, I've been in A&E for 7 hours with a suspected blood clot in my leg. Only another 2-3 hours to go. Apparently. Sitting this long will probably have given me one by now.
Then a dentist's appointment at 11.
My choice of book to read during this dreary night was about the Hundred Years War, which with its discussions of interminable sieges seems grimly appropriate.
Now onto Joan of Arc .....
People waiting were very well behaved though, apart from one man snoring loudly. Bad enough when Husband does it. But a strange man doing it is a bit much ....
Good luck.
I thought the important thing with clots was prompt intervention…
Cheaper China e-bikes 'kick in teeth' for UK firms
A government decision to scrap tariffs on Chinese e-bikes coming into the UK has been described as a "kick in the teeth for British manufacturing". Border taxes were imposed on Chinese e-bikes following Brexit, keeping the UK in line with the EU, but the Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds has accepted a recommendation to lift them on non-folding e-bikes from Friday.
Non-folding presumably to protect a single british firm?
You think?
(Protecting Brompton is stupid, fwiw. I have two and love them both, but they should compete on quality and innovation. Not be protected as some local champion.)
Also, how price sensitive are Brompton customers to cheaper alternatives? I naively would have thought not that much if you are happy to pay £2k on a bike.
Which Chinese bikes keep catching fire? If it's the folding ones then there would be some logic to it.
1 shot dead by a cop 2 arrested for soliciting sex with a minor 1 arrested with child sexual abuse material 1 arrested on federal gun charges 1 arrested on vehicular manslaughter (killing someone while drunk driving) 7 more arrested for unknown reasons
Although unless you benchmark against average Americans of their age, sex and class then it’s a meaningless list
I hope the number of 30 year olds who solicit sex with a minor is relatively small.
I agree. But I suspect there are more 30 year olds chatting up 17.99 year olds than you think
(I know no details of the case - whether it is merely dubious behaviour that is a technical breach or whether it is a serious crime).
Cheaper China e-bikes 'kick in teeth' for UK firms
A government decision to scrap tariffs on Chinese e-bikes coming into the UK has been described as a "kick in the teeth for British manufacturing". Border taxes were imposed on Chinese e-bikes following Brexit, keeping the UK in line with the EU, but the Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds has accepted a recommendation to lift them on non-folding e-bikes from Friday.
Non-folding presumably to protect a single british firm?
You think?
(Protecting Brompton is stupid, fwiw. I have two and love them both, but they should compete on quality and innovation. Not be protected as some local champion.)
Also, how price sensitive are Brompton customers to cheaper alternatives? I naively would have thought not that much if you are happy to pay £2k on a bike.
There are lots of wealthy people who get a surprisingly disproportionate pleasure from saving £20…
Well, I've been in A&E for 7 hours with a suspected blood clot in my leg. Only another 2-3 hours to go. Apparently. Sitting this long will probably have given me one by now.
Then a dentist's appointment at 11.
My choice of book to read during this dreary night was about the Hundred Years War, which with its discussions of interminable sieges seems grimly appropriate.
Now onto Joan of Arc .....
People waiting were very well behaved though, apart from one man snoring loudly. Bad enough when Husband does it. But a strange man doing it is a bit much ....
Cheaper China e-bikes 'kick in teeth' for UK firms
A government decision to scrap tariffs on Chinese e-bikes coming into the UK has been described as a "kick in the teeth for British manufacturing". Border taxes were imposed on Chinese e-bikes following Brexit, keeping the UK in line with the EU, but the Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds has accepted a recommendation to lift them on non-folding e-bikes from Friday.
Non-folding presumably to protect a single british firm?
You think?
(Protecting Brompton is stupid, fwiw. I have two and love them both, but they should compete on quality and innovation. Not be protected as some local champion.)
Also, how price sensitive are Brompton customers to cheaper alternatives? I naively would have thought not that much if you are happy to pay £2k on a bike.
There are lots of wealthy people who get a surprisingly disproportionate pleasure from saving £20…
There are already many cheaper options than Brompton if price was your only driver.
1 shot dead by a cop 2 arrested for soliciting sex with a minor 1 arrested with child sexual abuse material 1 arrested on federal gun charges 1 arrested on vehicular manslaughter (killing someone while drunk driving) 7 more arrested for unknown reasons
Although unless you benchmark against average Americans of their age, sex and class then it’s a meaningless list
I hope the number of 30 year olds who solicit sex with a minor is relatively small.
They seem to be represented in Congress on a fairly regular basis.
1 shot dead by a cop 2 arrested for soliciting sex with a minor 1 arrested with child sexual abuse material 1 arrested on federal gun charges 1 arrested on vehicular manslaughter (killing someone while drunk driving) 7 more arrested for unknown reasons
Although unless you benchmark against average Americans of their age, sex and class then it’s a meaningless list
I hope the number of 30 year olds who solicit sex with a minor is relatively small.
Well, I've been in A&E for 7 hours with a suspected blood clot in my leg. Only another 2-3 hours to go. Apparently. Sitting this long will probably have given me one by now.
Then a dentist's appointment at 11.
My choice of book to read during this dreary night was about the Hundred Years War, which with its discussions of interminable sieges seems grimly appropriate.
Now onto Joan of Arc .....
People waiting were very well behaved though, apart from one man snoring loudly. Bad enough when Husband does it. But a strange man doing it is a bit much ....
Friday at midnight probably not the best time to go to ED. The system is under horrible pressures.
It would be relatively easy to weaponise this in a cheap long range drone. that doesn't need GPS.
GPS-free visual-inertial navigation in real time on Raspberry Pi 5 with a consumer-grade IMU and camera (and this is not even the slowest CPU this runs on!) https://x.com/oseiskar/status/1887889319253180855
Well, I've been in A&E for 7 hours with a suspected blood clot in my leg. Only another 2-3 hours to go. Apparently. Sitting this long will probably have given me one by now.
Then a dentist's appointment at 11.
My choice of book to read during this dreary night was about the Hundred Years War, which with its discussions of interminable sieges seems grimly appropriate.
Now onto Joan of Arc .....
People waiting were very well behaved though, apart from one man snoring loudly. Bad enough when Husband does it. But a strange man doing it is a bit much ....
Good luck.
I thought the important thing with clots was prompt intervention…
I don't think you get prompt intervention in an A&E department for anything short of cardiac arrest. When I went to one in December accompanying husband I was made to stand for hours on end because all the chairs were needed for the vast proliferation of patients.
This is only going to keep getting worse. Of the available sources of revenue, the Government has either bled them white already or is too afraid to go after them. And the population is ballooning through immigration and more and more of it is getting old, obese and knackered. But we knew this already. Britain is a lost cause.
Well, I've been in A&E for 7 hours with a suspected blood clot in my leg. Only another 2-3 hours to go. Apparently. Sitting this long will probably have given me one by now.
Then a dentist's appointment at 11.
My choice of book to read during this dreary night was about the Hundred Years War, which with its discussions of interminable sieges seems grimly appropriate.
Now onto Joan of Arc .....
People waiting were very well behaved though, apart from one man snoring loudly. Bad enough when Husband does it. But a strange man doing it is a bit much ....
Good luck.
I thought the important thing with clots was prompt intervention…
I don't think you get prompt intervention in an A&E department for anything short of cardiac arrest. When I went to one in December accompanying husband I was made to stand for hours on end because all the chairs were needed for the vast proliferation of patients.
This is only going to keep getting worse. Of the available sources of revenue, the Government has either bled them white already or is too afraid to go after them. And the population is ballooning through immigration and more and more of it is getting old, obese and knackered. But we knew this already. Britain is a lost cause.
Astute article on why Donald Trump appears to tolerate Elon Musk upstaging him. Musk is an effective operator while Trump prefers to be a fake president than the real thing.
I don't think you get prompt intervention in an A&E department for anything short of cardiac arrest. When I went to one in December accompanying husband I was made to stand for hours on end because all the chairs were needed for the vast proliferation of patients.
But we voted for Brexit
I distinctly remember an advert showing A&E would be empty if we did that...
Well, I've been in A&E for 7 hours with a suspected blood clot in my leg. Only another 2-3 hours to go. Apparently. Sitting this long will probably have given me one by now.
Then a dentist's appointment at 11.
My choice of book to read during this dreary night was about the Hundred Years War, which with its discussions of interminable sieges seems grimly appropriate.
Now onto Joan of Arc .....
People waiting were very well behaved though, apart from one man snoring loudly. Bad enough when Husband does it. But a strange man doing it is a bit much ....
Good luck.
I thought the important thing with clots was prompt intervention…
I don't think you get prompt intervention in an A&E department for anything short of cardiac arrest. When I went to one in December accompanying husband I was made to stand for hours on end because all the chairs were needed for the vast proliferation of patients.
This is only going to keep getting worse. Of the available sources of revenue, the Government has either bled them white already or is too afraid to go after them. And the population is ballooning through immigration and more and more of it is getting old, obese and knackered. But we knew this already. Britain is a lost cause.
You're being too defeatist. We just need a response that matches the scale of the challenge, that isn't populist guff with no substance, and that doesn't demonise the 'other' because we're too frit to face up to our own challenges.
It can be done. Will it? Not sure. But we're not yet a lost cause.
Well, I've been in A&E for 7 hours with a suspected blood clot in my leg. Only another 2-3 hours to go. Apparently. Sitting this long will probably have given me one by now.
Then a dentist's appointment at 11.
My choice of book to read during this dreary night was about the Hundred Years War, which with its discussions of interminable sieges seems grimly appropriate.
Now onto Joan of Arc .....
People waiting were very well behaved though, apart from one man snoring loudly. Bad enough when Husband does it. But a strange man doing it is a bit much ....
Friday at midnight probably not the best time to go to ED. The system is under horrible pressures.
I hope it's a false alarm.
Unfortunately you do not get a choice when you need A & E
In October 2023 I went to my doctor with a swollen left thigh and was sent by him direct to A & E with a suspected DVT. I arrived at 5.30pm, was quickly triaged, then waited in terrible pain for 14 hours in a wheelchair until seeing the A & E doctor at 7.30am who immediately admitted me and I had an urgent ultrltrasound which confirmed my DVT but also found an aneurysm
I stated treatment immediately with blood thinners and my DVT dissolved over time, though I have annual screening for my aneurysm
I was checked every few hours whilst waiting in A & E but it was very unpleasant and worrying
I an sure @Cyclefree will receive excellent treatment once seen by the A & E doctor, but the wait time is simply unacceptable
It would be relatively easy to weaponise this in a cheap long range drone. that doesn't need GPS.
GPS-free visual-inertial navigation in real time on Raspberry Pi 5 with a consumer-grade IMU and camera (and this is not even the slowest CPU this runs on!) https://x.com/oseiskar/status/1887889319253180855
Error to GPS - 9.5m. Would need to be a very big target at a distance that other options couldn't touch.
It would be relatively easy to weaponise this in a cheap long range drone. that doesn't need GPS.
GPS-free visual-inertial navigation in real time on Raspberry Pi 5 with a consumer-grade IMU and camera (and this is not even the slowest CPU this runs on!) https://x.com/oseiskar/status/1887889319253180855
You need GPS (or another GNSS) at some point, unless you're clued up on haversines, because you have to initialise the INS with an accurate starting position.
All INS experience integral drift, exactly how much depends on the quality and sophistication of the device. The one in the Sea Harrier was made out bits Ferranti had left over in the stationary cupboard and drifted about 1 deg/hour in azimuth and 0.5 deg/hour in inclination. That's a lot at 500 knots.
That's the reason long range precision weapons can't rely on INS and have to supplement with other methods like stellar cartography (Trident) or radar ground mapping (Storm Shadow). So, no, it's not 'relatively easy' to weaponise this into a long range drone.
Exactly what I thought when I saw the original 'I am in the cult' tweet.
Suspect all is not well behind the scenes...
Bill Kristol @BillKristol · 1h Elon’s desperate. He knows that Trump knows that Elon’s undercutting him and damaging him.
And Elon’s profession of love won’t save him.
Musk is useful, but how much does Trump actually need him? It's not like he will suddenly turn in to a powerful opponent of Trump's if he gets cut down to size.
I suspect it is not Trump but Vance who is opposed to Musk, and mainstream Republicans who are nervous of what he is doing. Permanent revolution is not why they entered politics.
Is there any evidence for that suspicion ?
All this 'Trump is about to ditch Musk and moderate' stuff sounds like wishcasting to me.
For an alternate vibe. The White House just issued an executive order on South Africa that includes admitting Afrikaner South Africans as refugees to the United States https://x.com/Bencjacobs/status/1888000443172721034
It would be relatively easy to weaponise this in a cheap long range drone. that doesn't need GPS.
GPS-free visual-inertial navigation in real time on Raspberry Pi 5 with a consumer-grade IMU and camera (and this is not even the slowest CPU this runs on!) https://x.com/oseiskar/status/1887889319253180855
You need GPS (or another GNSS) at some point, unless you're clued up on haversines, because you have to initialise the INS with an accurate starting position.
All INS experience integral drift, exactly how much depends on the quality and sophistication of the device. The one in the Sea Harrier was made out bits Ferranti had left over in the stationary cupboard and drifted about 1 deg/hour in azimuth and 0.5 deg/hour in inclination. That's a lot at 500 knots.
That's the reason long range precision weapons can't rely on INS and have to supplement with other methods like stellar cartography (Trident) or radar ground mapping (Storm Shadow). So, no, it's not 'relatively easy' to weaponise this into a long range drone.
The correction with this is visual, using a simple camera, a map database and AI.
The fact that it can be done with very cheap consumer grade components is what's interesting.
"Russians complain about receiving humanitarian aid with explosives – FPV drone goggles that explode upon activation. Inside, an explosive device was found, discovered only during use."
Well, I've been in A&E for 7 hours with a suspected blood clot in my leg. Only another 2-3 hours to go. Apparently. Sitting this long will probably have given me one by now.
Then a dentist's appointment at 11.
My choice of book to read during this dreary night was about the Hundred Years War, which with its discussions of interminable sieges seems grimly appropriate.
Now onto Joan of Arc .....
People waiting were very well behaved though, apart from one man snoring loudly. Bad enough when Husband does it. But a strange man doing it is a bit much ....
Good luck.
I thought the important thing with clots was prompt intervention…
I don't think you get prompt intervention in an A&E department for anything short of cardiac arrest. When I went to one in December accompanying husband I was made to stand for hours on end because all the chairs were needed for the vast proliferation of patients.
This is only going to keep getting worse. Of the available sources of revenue, the Government has either bled them white already or is too afraid to go after them. And the population is ballooning through immigration and more and more of it is getting old, obese and knackered. But we knew this already. Britain is a lost cause.
Yes, it's not an orderly queue, there is triage so that the most dangerous things get priority. It doesn't always get it right, like the woman who died of a subarachnoid haemorrhage in Nottingham. Indeed the Royal College of Emergency Medicine estimates that ED delays caused 268 deaths per week in 2023. I shouldn't think it has got better.
Attendance are up (10% year on year at my Trust, but funding is flat, by block contract so we are just expected to absorb the costs), but the real problem is the lack of beds to admit to. That lack of beds is why the 62 day cancer treatment target is missed too. Cancer patients are prioritised, but even so get cancelled.
We probably simply don't have enough beds overall, but the biggest problem is the failure to sort out Social Care. Around a quarter of our beds are occupied by patients awaiting discharge. The problem of ED comes back to that.
Exactly what I thought when I saw the original 'I am in the cult' tweet.
Suspect all is not well behind the scenes...
Bill Kristol @BillKristol · 1h Elon’s desperate. He knows that Trump knows that Elon’s undercutting him and damaging him.
And Elon’s profession of love won’t save him.
Musk is useful, but how much does Trump actually need him? It's not like he will suddenly turn in to a powerful opponent of Trump's if he gets cut down to size.
I suspect it is not Trump but Vance who is opposed to Musk, and mainstream Republicans who are nervous of what he is doing. Permanent revolution is not why they entered politics.
Is there any evidence for that suspicion ?
All this 'Trump is about to ditch Musk and moderate' stuff sounds like wishcasting to me.
For an alternate vibe. The White House just issued an executive order on South Africa that includes admitting Afrikaner South Africans as refugees to the United States https://x.com/Bencjacobs/status/1888000443172721034
The things that Elon is doing are currently popular, so Trump is happy to let him get on with it.
It is (I think) inevitable that some of those things will turn out to eventually be not very popular at all.
That is the point when we discover who is really in charge.
Well, I've been in A&E for 7 hours with a suspected blood clot in my leg. Only another 2-3 hours to go. Apparently. Sitting this long will probably have given me one by now.
Then a dentist's appointment at 11.
My choice of book to read during this dreary night was about the Hundred Years War, which with its discussions of interminable sieges seems grimly appropriate.
Now onto Joan of Arc .....
People waiting were very well behaved though, apart from one man snoring loudly. Bad enough when Husband does it. But a strange man doing it is a bit much ....
Good luck.
I thought the important thing with clots was prompt intervention…
I don't think you get prompt intervention in an A&E department for anything short of cardiac arrest. When I went to one in December accompanying husband I was made to stand for hours on end because all the chairs were needed for the vast proliferation of patients.
This is only going to keep getting worse. Of the available sources of revenue, the Government has either bled them white already or is too afraid to go after them. And the population is ballooning through immigration and more and more of it is getting old, obese and knackered. But we knew this already. Britain is a lost cause.
Yes, it's not an orderly queue, there is triage so that the most dangerous things get priority. It doesn't always get it right, like the woman who died of a subarachnoid haemorrhage in Nottingham. Indeed the Royal College of Emergency Medicine estimates that ED delays caused 268 deaths per week in 2023. I shouldn't think it has got better.
Attendance are up (10% year on year at my Trust, but funding is flat, by block contract so we are just expected to absorb the costs), but the real problem is the lack of beds to admit to. That lack of beds is why the 62 day cancer treatment target is missed too. Cancer patients are prioritised, but even so get cancelled.
We probably simply don't have enough beds overall, but the biggest problem is the failure to sort out Social Care. Around a quarter of our beds are occupied by patients awaiting discharge. The problem of ED comes back to that.
And lsbour have kicked social care into touch with a report due in 2028 that is unlikely to be acted on in this parliament
Sometimes the A&E triage simply gets it wrong sometimes. I wonder how often. Someone close to me was recommended to go home with a broken hip. Came back next day, sent to minor injuries. Insisted on x ray, low and beyond broken hip. Emergency surgery. Once you’re in, brilliant. Not so much a capacity issue.
"Russians complain about receiving humanitarian aid with explosives – FPV drone goggles that explode upon activation. Inside, an explosive device was found, discovered only during use."
Well, I've been in A&E for 7 hours with a suspected blood clot in my leg. Only another 2-3 hours to go. Apparently. Sitting this long will probably have given me one by now.
Then a dentist's appointment at 11.
My choice of book to read during this dreary night was about the Hundred Years War, which with its discussions of interminable sieges seems grimly appropriate.
Now onto Joan of Arc .....
People waiting were very well behaved though, apart from one man snoring loudly. Bad enough when Husband does it. But a strange man doing it is a bit much ....
Good luck.
I thought the important thing with clots was prompt intervention…
I don't think you get prompt intervention in an A&E department for anything short of cardiac arrest. When I went to one in December accompanying husband I was made to stand for hours on end because all the chairs were needed for the vast proliferation of patients.
This is only going to keep getting worse. Of the available sources of revenue, the Government has either bled them white already or is too afraid to go after them. And the population is ballooning through immigration and more and more of it is getting old, obese and knackered. But we knew this already. Britain is a lost cause.
You're being too defeatist. We just need a response that matches the scale of the challenge, that isn't populist guff with no substance, and that doesn't demonise the 'other' because we're too frit to face up to our own challenges.
It can be done. Will it? Not sure. But we're not yet a lost cause.
We're a lost cause because it won't be done. Too many voters have too much to lose from major reform of a socio-economic system where too large a proportion of finite resources are spent on the least productive assets (homes) and people (the elderly, and yes I'm afraid I'm waging a hopeless war against the triple lock again.)
An older society is a poorer society - and no, we can't solve the problem through importing more workers, because population growth is one giant Ponzi scheme that stretches available resources even thinner and just begets more old people further down the line. The only sustainable way to deal with an ageing society is through redistribution, and for the very distorted UK economy that means less generous state pension hikes and substantially heavier taxation of housing and inheritances, so as to plug the holes in the health and social care system and provide better support for struggling workers and especially children. The chances of that happening are almost nil.
Exactly what I thought when I saw the original 'I am in the cult' tweet.
Suspect all is not well behind the scenes...
Bill Kristol @BillKristol · 1h Elon’s desperate. He knows that Trump knows that Elon’s undercutting him and damaging him.
And Elon’s profession of love won’t save him.
Musk is useful, but how much does Trump actually need him? It's not like he will suddenly turn in to a powerful opponent of Trump's if he gets cut down to size.
I suspect it is not Trump but Vance who is opposed to Musk, and mainstream Republicans who are nervous of what he is doing. Permanent revolution is not why they entered politics.
Is there any evidence for that suspicion ?
All this 'Trump is about to ditch Musk and moderate' stuff sounds like wishcasting to me.
For an alternate vibe. The White House just issued an executive order on South Africa that includes admitting Afrikaner South Africans as refugees to the United States https://x.com/Bencjacobs/status/1888000443172721034
The things that Elon is doing are currently popular, so Trump is happy to let him get on with it.
It is (I think) inevitable that some of those things will turn out to eventually be not very popular at all.
That is the point when we discover who is really in charge.
Not very popular with whom though? DJT won't give a fuck as long as they're not unpopular with the deplorables. Quite a few of them will like whatever mad fuckery happens in the rapidly unfolding autogolpe, whether personally detrimental to them or or not, just because its DJT/Musk that's doing them.
Well, I've been in A&E for 7 hours with a suspected blood clot in my leg. Only another 2-3 hours to go. Apparently. Sitting this long will probably have given me one by now.
Then a dentist's appointment at 11.
My choice of book to read during this dreary night was about the Hundred Years War, which with its discussions of interminable sieges seems grimly appropriate.
Now onto Joan of Arc .....
People waiting were very well behaved though, apart from one man snoring loudly. Bad enough when Husband does it. But a strange man doing it is a bit much ....
Good luck.
I thought the important thing with clots was prompt intervention…
I don't think you get prompt intervention in an A&E department for anything short of cardiac arrest. When I went to one in December accompanying husband I was made to stand for hours on end because all the chairs were needed for the vast proliferation of patients.
This is only going to keep getting worse. Of the available sources of revenue, the Government has either bled them white already or is too afraid to go after them. And the population is ballooning through immigration and more and more of it is getting old, obese and knackered. But we knew this already. Britain is a lost cause.
Yes, it's not an orderly queue, there is triage so that the most dangerous things get priority. It doesn't always get it right, like the woman who died of a subarachnoid haemorrhage in Nottingham. Indeed the Royal College of Emergency Medicine estimates that ED delays caused 268 deaths per week in 2023. I shouldn't think it has got better.
Attendance are up (10% year on year at my Trust, but funding is flat, by block contract so we are just expected to absorb the costs), but the real problem is the lack of beds to admit to. That lack of beds is why the 62 day cancer treatment target is missed too. Cancer patients are prioritised, but even so get cancelled.
We probably simply don't have enough beds overall, but the biggest problem is the failure to sort out Social Care. Around a quarter of our beds are occupied by patients awaiting discharge. The problem of ED comes back to that.
And lsbour have kicked social care into touch with a report due in 2028 that is unlikely to be acted on in this parliament
Yep, it's a serial failure by governments.
I don't think another party will run with it after May's disastrous campaign of 2017.
I commented here at the time that it was a good plan, though clearly it went down badly. I didn't vote Conservative because of Brexit, but she didn't implement it despite winning.
Exactly what I thought when I saw the original 'I am in the cult' tweet.
Suspect all is not well behind the scenes...
Bill Kristol @BillKristol · 1h Elon’s desperate. He knows that Trump knows that Elon’s undercutting him and damaging him.
And Elon’s profession of love won’t save him.
Musk is useful, but how much does Trump actually need him? It's not like he will suddenly turn in to a powerful opponent of Trump's if he gets cut down to size.
I suspect it is not Trump but Vance who is opposed to Musk, and mainstream Republicans who are nervous of what he is doing. Permanent revolution is not why they entered politics.
Is there any evidence for that suspicion ?
All this 'Trump is about to ditch Musk and moderate' stuff sounds like wishcasting to me.
For an alternate vibe. The White House just issued an executive order on South Africa that includes admitting Afrikaner South Africans as refugees to the United States https://x.com/Bencjacobs/status/1888000443172721034
The things that Elon is doing are currently popular, so Trump is happy to let him get on with it.
It is (I think) inevitable that some of those things will turn out to eventually be not very popular at all.
That is the point when we discover who is really in charge.
Not very popular with whom though? DJT won't give a fuck as long as they're not unpopular with the deplorables. Quite a few of them will like whatever mad fuckery happens in the rapidly unfolding autogolpe, whether personally detrimental to them or or not, just because its DJT/Musk that's doing them.
Unpopular with the deplorables is where they are heading.
You can't cut that many wires in the US economy without the risk of a catastrophic failure.
His latest wheeze is to shutter the agency that stops consumers getting ripped off. Even the deplorables don't like getting shafted (well some of them)
I don't think you get prompt intervention in an A&E department for anything short of cardiac arrest. When I went to one in December accompanying husband I was made to stand for hours on end because all the chairs were needed for the vast proliferation of patients.
But we voted for Brexit
I distinctly remember an advert showing A&E would be empty if we did that...
Arguing about Europe til the cows come home will solve nothing. Our major problems are rooted in bad demographics and bad tax and spending policies. The former is essentially unavoidable and the latter is our fault.
Many of the things Musk and Trump are doing will not be easy to reverse. It is often not a case of turning off taps that can easily be turned back on again. The longer this goes on, the greater the chances that institutions need to be rebuilt from the ground up. And with this lot in charge, they'll be rebuilt in the image of their founders.
Which is not good.
America is fucked. Rather than draining the swamp, they've turned the entire place into a quagmire.
Looks as if Musk's team may be gutting consumer and financial fraud protections in the U.S, already much weaker than here. This sort of thimg is going on throughout the U.S govt.
I don't think you get prompt intervention in an A&E department for anything short of cardiac arrest. When I went to one in December accompanying husband I was made to stand for hours on end because all the chairs were needed for the vast proliferation of patients.
But we voted for Brexit
I distinctly remember an advert showing A&E would be empty if we did that...
If only we could have held a referendum on COVID ...
"Russians complain about receiving humanitarian aid with explosives – FPV drone goggles that explode upon activation. Inside, an explosive device was found, discovered only during use."
It's also interesting that FPV drones obviously meant for combat are called/translated as 'humanitarian aid'.
I suspect it’s a mistranslation of “aid from China” (“friendship aid” or something) rather than what you think of as “humanitarian” aid. You’d be reading too much into it if you think it implies a Russian mindset to using your-understanding-of humanitarian aid as a decoy
Many of the things Musk and Trump are doing will not be easy to reverse. It is often not a case of turning off taps that can easily be turned back on again. The longer this goes on, the greater the chances that institutions need to be rebuilt from the ground up. And with this lot in charge, they'll be rebuilt in the image of their founders.
Which is not good.
America is fucked. Rather than draining the swamp, they've turned the entire place into a quagmire.
It's grimly fascinating, in a "I'm glad I don't live there anymore" kinda way, except we are also going to feel the impacts to some extent
Well, I've been in A&E for 7 hours with a suspected blood clot in my leg. Only another 2-3 hours to go. Apparently. Sitting this long will probably have given me one by now.
Then a dentist's appointment at 11.
My choice of book to read during this dreary night was about the Hundred Years War, which with its discussions of interminable sieges seems grimly appropriate.
Now onto Joan of Arc .....
People waiting were very well behaved though, apart from one man snoring loudly. Bad enough when Husband does it. But a strange man doing it is a bit much ....
Good luck.
I thought the important thing with clots was prompt intervention…
I don't think you get prompt intervention in an A&E department for anything short of cardiac arrest. When I went to one in December accompanying husband I was made to stand for hours on end because all the chairs were needed for the vast proliferation of patients.
This is only going to keep getting worse. Of the available sources of revenue, the Government has either bled them white already or is too afraid to go after them. And the population is ballooning through immigration and more and more of it is getting old, obese and knackered. But we knew this already. Britain is a lost cause.
Yes, it's not an orderly queue, there is triage so that the most dangerous things get priority. It doesn't always get it right, like the woman who died of a subarachnoid haemorrhage in Nottingham. Indeed the Royal College of Emergency Medicine estimates that ED delays caused 268 deaths per week in 2023. I shouldn't think it has got better.
Attendance are up (10% year on year at my Trust, but funding is flat, by block contract so we are just expected to absorb the costs), but the real problem is the lack of beds to admit to. That lack of beds is why the 62 day cancer treatment target is missed too. Cancer patients are prioritised, but even so get cancelled.
We probably simply don't have enough beds overall, but the biggest problem is the failure to sort out Social Care. Around a quarter of our beds are occupied by patients awaiting discharge. The problem of ED comes back to that.
And the government apparently thinks social care can wait
It would be relatively easy to weaponise this in a cheap long range drone. that doesn't need GPS.
GPS-free visual-inertial navigation in real time on Raspberry Pi 5 with a consumer-grade IMU and camera (and this is not even the slowest CPU this runs on!) https://x.com/oseiskar/status/1887889319253180855
Error to GPS - 9.5m. Would need to be a very big target at a distance that other options couldn't touch.
Have you looked at a Russian oil refinery ? In any case, this is just the first version.
The point is that it gives long range capability in GPS denied environments, for pennies.
More than 100,000 new homes will be built on the highest-risk flood zones in England in the next five years as part of the government’s push for 1.5m extra properties by the end of this parliament, Guardian analysis suggests.
Well, I've been in A&E for 7 hours with a suspected blood clot in my leg. Only another 2-3 hours to go. Apparently. Sitting this long will probably have given me one by now.
Then a dentist's appointment at 11.
My choice of book to read during this dreary night was about the Hundred Years War, which with its discussions of interminable sieges seems grimly appropriate.
Now onto Joan of Arc .....
People waiting were very well behaved though, apart from one man snoring loudly. Bad enough when Husband does it. But a strange man doing it is a bit much ....
Good luck.
I thought the important thing with clots was prompt intervention…
I don't think you get prompt intervention in an A&E department for anything short of cardiac arrest. When I went to one in December accompanying husband I was made to stand for hours on end because all the chairs were needed for the vast proliferation of patients.
This is only going to keep getting worse. Of the available sources of revenue, the Government has either bled them white already or is too afraid to go after them. And the population is ballooning through immigration and more and more of it is getting old, obese and knackered. But we knew this already. Britain is a lost cause.
You're being too defeatist. We just need a response that matches the scale of the challenge, that isn't populist guff with no substance, and that doesn't demonise the 'other' because we're too frit to face up to our own challenges.
It can be done. Will it? Not sure. But we're not yet a lost cause.
We're a lost cause because it won't be done. Too many voters have too much to lose from major reform of a socio-economic system where too large a proportion of finite resources are spent on the least productive assets (homes) and people (the elderly, and yes I'm afraid I'm waging a hopeless war against the triple lock again.)
An older society is a poorer society - and no, we can't solve the problem through importing more workers, because population growth is one giant Ponzi scheme that stretches available resources even thinner and just begets more old people further down the line. The only sustainable way to deal with an ageing society is through redistribution, and for the very distorted UK economy that means less generous state pension hikes and substantially heavier taxation of housing and inheritances, so as to plug the holes in the health and social care system and provide better support for struggling workers and especially children. The chances of that happening are almost nil.
It's not just the substantial grey vote that is the obstacle. Younger people have parents, and want decent benefits themselves in retirement.
The Triple Lock has to go, perhaps replacing it with the single lock of tying it to median wages increase. Property should be taxed more, but I would favour an annual property tax rather than the rather lumpy Stamp Duty and IHT. Apart from raising money, it would free up housing by encouraging downsizing and also get people investing in more productive assets like businesses.
Well, I've been in A&E for 7 hours with a suspected blood clot in my leg. Only another 2-3 hours to go. Apparently. Sitting this long will probably have given me one by now.
Then a dentist's appointment at 11.
My choice of book to read during this dreary night was about the Hundred Years War, which with its discussions of interminable sieges seems grimly appropriate.
Now onto Joan of Arc .....
People waiting were very well behaved though, apart from one man snoring loudly. Bad enough when Husband does it. But a strange man doing it is a bit much ....
Good luck.
I thought the important thing with clots was prompt intervention…
I don't think you get prompt intervention in an A&E department for anything short of cardiac arrest. When I went to one in December accompanying husband I was made to stand for hours on end because all the chairs were needed for the vast proliferation of patients.
This is only going to keep getting worse. Of the available sources of revenue, the Government has either bled them white already or is too afraid to go after them. And the population is ballooning through immigration and more and more of it is getting old, obese and knackered. But we knew this already. Britain is a lost cause.
Yes, it's not an orderly queue, there is triage so that the most dangerous things get priority. It doesn't always get it right, like the woman who died of a subarachnoid haemorrhage in Nottingham. Indeed the Royal College of Emergency Medicine estimates that ED delays caused 268 deaths per week in 2023. I shouldn't think it has got better.
Attendance are up (10% year on year at my Trust, but funding is flat, by block contract so we are just expected to absorb the costs), but the real problem is the lack of beds to admit to. That lack of beds is why the 62 day cancer treatment target is missed too. Cancer patients are prioritised, but even so get cancelled.
We probably simply don't have enough beds overall, but the biggest problem is the failure to sort out Social Care. Around a quarter of our beds are occupied by patients awaiting discharge. The problem of ED comes back to that.
And lsbour have kicked social care into touch with a report due in 2028 that is unlikely to be acted on in this parliament
Yep, it's a serial failure by governments.
I don't think another party will run with it after May's disastrous campaign of 2017.
I commented here at the time that it was a good plan, though clearly it went down badly. I didn't vote Conservative because of Brexit, but she didn't implement it despite winning.
And BoJo had a bit of a plan in the Health and Social Care levy (albeit one that broke his 2019 manifesto). Nixed in the Truss Interlude and not brought back by Sunak.
As long as people go berserk at any mention of tax increases, it's a blooming hard problem to fix. One of those bits of national dishonesty that makes me think that Brecht had a point.
More than 100,000 new homes will be built on the highest-risk flood zones in England in the next five years as part of the government’s push for 1.5m extra properties by the end of this parliament, Guardian analysis suggests.
Sometimes the A&E triage simply gets it wrong sometimes. I wonder how often. Someone close to me was recommended to go home with a broken hip. Came back next day, sent to minor injuries. Insisted on x ray, low and beyond broken hip. Emergency surgery. Once you’re in, brilliant. Not so much a capacity issue.
I expect they do make mistakes with the amount of work they have to do, but it most certainly is a capacity issue. The hospitals are rammed full, a lot of it through bed blocking caused by the failure of social care, and you've a finite number of hospitals (most of which are old, many of which are falling down) dealing with a population that's continually expanding in total via mass immigration, and within which there are also ever rising numbers of the frail and the fat.
That doesn't mean that the whole system has imploded - yet - but more of it is falling down over time. The private healthcare sector is booming because people with money are desperate to dodge multi-year queues for elective surgery, not because they're longing for private rooms with pretty paintings on the walls.
More than 100,000 new homes will be built on the highest-risk flood zones in England in the next five years as part of the government’s push for 1.5m extra properties by the end of this parliament, Guardian analysis suggests.
Unremark ed upon much recently is the triumph of the financial elites. Trump's Treasury Secretary who is a hedge fund manager is as we speak gutting almost all financial industry regulation in the U.S., most of it put in place after 2008.
Meanwhile, over here in the U.K, Reform and Farage's most regular foghorn is GB News, funded ny the large financial interests of the Legatum Institute.
More than 100,000 new homes will be built on the highest-risk flood zones in England in the next five years as part of the government’s push for 1.5m extra properties by the end of this parliament, Guardian analysis suggests.
Well if they were on stilts, it might protect against the flooding.
Always buy a house on the top of a hill IMHO.
Some insurers won't insure me because I'm less than however many yards it is from the sea, even though being up a hill such that flooding is an impossibility and all of London except the top of Hampstead Heath will be underwater before the sea level ever reaches my doorstep. Given the geological instability round here, it's more likely that my house moves down to the sea before the sea comes up to the house.
That said, with the way the climate is going I'd be wary of buying anywhere near a river.
Sometimes the A&E triage simply gets it wrong sometimes. I wonder how often. Someone close to me was recommended to go home with a broken hip. Came back next day, sent to minor injuries. Insisted on x ray, low and beyond broken hip. Emergency surgery. Once you’re in, brilliant. Not so much a capacity issue.
I expect they do make mistakes with the amount of work they have to do, but it most certainly is a capacity issue. The hospitals are rammed full, a lot of it through bed blocking caused by the failure of social care, and you've a finite number of hospitals (most of which are old, many of which are falling down) dealing with a population that's continually expanding in total via mass immigration, and within which there are also ever rising numbers of the frail and the fat.
That doesn't mean that the whole system has imploded - yet - but more of it is falling down over time. The private healthcare sector is booming because people with money are desperate to dodge multi-year queues for elective surgery, not because they're longing for private rooms with pretty paintings on the walls.
An expanding population is not inherently a problem. More people means more people tax revenue to pay for health services. Luxembourg doesn’t have a better health service than the UK just by virtue of having a small population.
R4 Today programme doing one of its regular cringey forays into popular culture, in this case the (mysterious to this old twat) beef between Kendrick Lamar & Drake. However they pleasingly had a rap commentator on called Thomas Hobbes - peak R4!
Unremark ed upon much recently is the triumph of the financial elites. Trump's Treasury Secretary who is a hedge fund manager is as we speak gutting almost all financial industry regulation in the U.S., most of it put in place after 2008.
Meanwhile, over here in the U.K, Reform and Farage's most regular foghorn is GB News, funded ny the large financial interests of the Legatum Institute.
How could it be otherwise?
Money is a generalised ability to buy stuff. If it's the game you are interested in playing, why not use your money to buy the tools to acquire power, and then use your power to acquire more money?
Hence regulations about bribery and about campaign finance. In well-run countries, anyway.
Sometimes the A&E triage simply gets it wrong sometimes. I wonder how often. Someone close to me was recommended to go home with a broken hip. Came back next day, sent to minor injuries. Insisted on x ray, low and beyond broken hip. Emergency surgery. Once you’re in, brilliant. Not so much a capacity issue.
I expect they do make mistakes with the amount of work they have to do, but it most certainly is a capacity issue. The hospitals are rammed full, a lot of it through bed blocking caused by the failure of social care, and you've a finite number of hospitals (most of which are old, many of which are falling down) dealing with a population that's continually expanding in total via mass immigration, and within which there are also ever rising numbers of the frail and the fat.
That doesn't mean that the whole system has imploded - yet - but more of it is falling down over time. The private healthcare sector is booming because people with money are desperate to dodge multi-year queues for elective surgery, not because they're longing for private rooms with pretty paintings on the walls.
It’s generous of those with money not to consume resources best allocated to those less well off than themselves
R4 Today programme doing one of its regular cringey forays into popular culture, in this case the (mysterious to this old twat) beef between Kendrick Lamar & Drake. However they pleasingly had a rap commentator on called Thomas Hobbes - peak R4!
Mr. Divvie, on the rare occasion I catch BBC News and they're discussing video games it's almost always amusing how clearly unfamiliar they are with the sector, despite it dwarfing Hollywood.
Sometimes the A&E triage simply gets it wrong sometimes. I wonder how often. Someone close to me was recommended to go home with a broken hip. Came back next day, sent to minor injuries. Insisted on x ray, low and beyond broken hip. Emergency surgery. Once you’re in, brilliant. Not so much a capacity issue.
I expect they do make mistakes with the amount of work they have to do, but it most certainly is a capacity issue. The hospitals are rammed full, a lot of it through bed blocking caused by the failure of social care, and you've a finite number of hospitals (most of which are old, many of which are falling down) dealing with a population that's continually expanding in total via mass immigration, and within which there are also ever rising numbers of the frail and the fat.
That doesn't mean that the whole system has imploded - yet - but more of it is falling down over time. The private healthcare sector is booming because people with money are desperate to dodge multi-year queues for elective surgery, not because they're longing for private rooms with pretty paintings on the walls.
There are no private emergency departments.
When you get run over, or fracture a hip in a fall, or have a heart attack over the latest poll there is nowhere else to go other than Casualty at St Elsewhere NHS Trust.
It's why it is in the interest of even the wealthiest of us to sort it out.
Sometimes the A&E triage simply gets it wrong sometimes. I wonder how often. Someone close to me was recommended to go home with a broken hip. Came back next day, sent to minor injuries. Insisted on x ray, low and beyond broken hip. Emergency surgery. Once you’re in, brilliant. Not so much a capacity issue.
I expect they do make mistakes with the amount of work they have to do, but it most certainly is a capacity issue. The hospitals are rammed full, a lot of it through bed blocking caused by the failure of social care, and you've a finite number of hospitals (most of which are old, many of which are falling down) dealing with a population that's continually expanding in total via mass immigration, and within which there are also ever rising numbers of the frail and the fat.
That doesn't mean that the whole system has imploded - yet - but more of it is falling down over time. The private healthcare sector is booming because people with money are desperate to dodge multi-year queues for elective surgery, not because they're longing for private rooms with pretty paintings on the walls.
An expanding population is not inherently a problem. More people means more people tax revenue to pay for health services. Luxembourg doesn’t have a better health service than the UK just by virtue of having a small population.
It is for us because we've insufficient resources. We can't or won't build enough housing to keep up with demand, the rest of our infrastructure (notably water and sewerage) is creaking and leaking under the strain, and ramming more and more people into the country also increases our reliance on imported food. All of this just heaps more burdens upon the large slice of the population that's already hard up and acutely vulnerable to inflation.
None of this would matter if the land were half empty, but England already has a higher population density than the Netherlands and most of Scotland and Wales consist of remote upland areas of limited practical use. We can't solve the housing crisis by building another London in the middle of the Cairngorms.
At the moment we can't cope without yet more immigrants because of skills gaps, but in the long run the taps must be turned off. That will be a difficult and painful process - fewer taxpayers means shorter retirements for current workers and stingier benefits for current pensioners - which means it won't happen, and we'll end up completely stuffed to the gunwales with tens of millions more bloody people. This is unquestionably an awful outcome, but we will have brought it upon ourselves.
*Attorney General Richard Hermer strengthened government legal advice on the Chagos islands to give a ‘clearer steer’ that the UK faced breaking international law, leading Keir Starmer to accelerate a deal, sources say.
*Advice inherited by Labour from the Tories said there was a risk international courts could rule that Britain should hand over sovereignty of the islands to Mauritius.
*But as part of his reforms updating the so-called ‘legal risk guidance’ given to ministers by government lawyers, Hermer gave a clearer steer that without a deal the UK would likely lose a future case and have to give up the islands to comply with such a ruling.
*Starmer accepted that upgraded advice and concluded the negotiations with Mauritius that started under the Tories.
*However, senior Conservative sources say there was a key difference: they say they would never have complied with any such ruling, and claim they had a secret strategy of pausing, delaying and never completing the Mauritius negotiations in order to kick the problem into the long grass.
*The Tory approach may have been legally debatable, but it was in the national interest, one said.
*Some Labour sources now wish they had taken a similar approach, blaming Hermer for tying Starmer’s hands with black and white advice. There are concerns in No10 and Cabinet about why they are spending so much capital on a deal that could cause a diplomatic row with the US with no political benefit at home.
*If Trump vetoes the deal, it means Hermer’s advice is that Starmer directly risks breaching international law. That would make Hermer’s position in cabinet untenable, Labour sources said
Sometimes the A&E triage simply gets it wrong sometimes. I wonder how often. Someone close to me was recommended to go home with a broken hip. Came back next day, sent to minor injuries. Insisted on x ray, low and beyond broken hip. Emergency surgery. Once you’re in, brilliant. Not so much a capacity issue.
I expect they do make mistakes with the amount of work they have to do, but it most certainly is a capacity issue. The hospitals are rammed full, a lot of it through bed blocking caused by the failure of social care, and you've a finite number of hospitals (most of which are old, many of which are falling down) dealing with a population that's continually expanding in total via mass immigration, and within which there are also ever rising numbers of the frail and the fat.
That doesn't mean that the whole system has imploded - yet - but more of it is falling down over time. The private healthcare sector is booming because people with money are desperate to dodge multi-year queues for elective surgery, not because they're longing for private rooms with pretty paintings on the walls.
There are no private emergency departments.
When you get run over, or fracture a hip in a fall, or have a heart attack over the latest poll there is nowhere else to go other than Casualty at St Elsewhere NHS Trust.
It's why it is in the interest of even the wealthiest of us to sort it out.
But it won't be sorted out because there's no more money. Or, more accurately, half the population has nothing left to give and the Government is too terrified to turn the other half upside down and give them a good shake. So they pretend they can solve everything with various kinds of "reform," which means reorganizations that avoid the need to raise a lot of extra revenue.
I imagine that some administrative tinkering might be able to create efficiencies and save some cash, but it's not going to build dozens of new hospitals, hundreds of new care homes and train and pay the staff decent wages to operate them. It always comes back to money. If folk want stuff to start working they're going to have to pay for it.
*Attorney General Richard Hermer strengthened government legal advice on the Chagos islands to give a ‘clearer steer’ that the UK faced breaking international law, leading Keir Starmer to accelerate a deal, sources say.
*Advice inherited by Labour from the Tories said there was a risk international courts could rule that Britain should hand over sovereignty of the islands to Mauritius.
*But as part of his reforms updating the so-called ‘legal risk guidance’ given to ministers by government lawyers, Hermer gave a clearer steer that without a deal the UK would likely lose a future case and have to give up the islands to comply with such a ruling.
*Starmer accepted that upgraded advice and concluded the negotiations with Mauritius that started under the Tories.
*However, senior Conservative sources say there was a key difference: they say they would never have complied with any such ruling, and claim they had a secret strategy of pausing, delaying and never completing the Mauritius negotiations in order to kick the problem into the long grass.
*The Tory approach may have been legally debatable, but it was in the national interest, one said.
*Some Labour sources now wish they had taken a similar approach, blaming Hermer for tying Starmer’s hands with black and white advice. There are concerns in No10 and Cabinet about why they are spending so much capital on a deal that could cause a diplomatic row with the US with no political benefit at home.
*If Trump vetoes the deal, it means Hermer’s advice is that Starmer directly risks breaching international law. That would make Hermer’s position in cabinet untenable, Labour sources said
I am personally of the opinion that the individual who was employed to give legal advice to Mauritius on this issue should have recused themselves from the issue when it came before our government so as to avoid even the appearance of bias.
Hermer should never have been allowed anywhere near this by the government. It looks corrupt, regardless of the reality.
Many of the things Musk and Trump are doing will not be easy to reverse. It is often not a case of turning off taps that can easily be turned back on again. The longer this goes on, the greater the chances that institutions need to be rebuilt from the ground up. And with this lot in charge, they'll be rebuilt in the image of their founders.
Which is not good.
America is fucked. Rather than draining the swamp, they've turned the entire place into a quagmire.
It's grimly fascinating, in a "I'm glad I don't live there anymore" kinda way, except we are also going to feel the impacts to some extent
Musk’s next target is the CFPB (Consumer Finance Protection Bureau). A body set up after 2008 to have direct funding from the Federal Reserve so that it would be politically neutral & to act only in the interests of consumers.
I imagine it’s annoyed Musk in some way, so it’s for the chop, regardless of whether it’s a net benefit to the USA.
They clearly intend to break everything. “Autogolpe” the South Americans call it I believe?
The United States shall promote the resettlement of Afrikaner refugees escaping government-sponsored race-based discrimination, including racially discriminatory property confiscation.
Sometimes the A&E triage simply gets it wrong sometimes. I wonder how often. Someone close to me was recommended to go home with a broken hip. Came back next day, sent to minor injuries. Insisted on x ray, low and beyond broken hip. Emergency surgery. Once you’re in, brilliant. Not so much a capacity issue.
I expect they do make mistakes with the amount of work they have to do, but it most certainly is a capacity issue. The hospitals are rammed full, a lot of it through bed blocking caused by the failure of social care, and you've a finite number of hospitals (most of which are old, many of which are falling down) dealing with a population that's continually expanding in total via mass immigration, and within which there are also ever rising numbers of the frail and the fat.
That doesn't mean that the whole system has imploded - yet - but more of it is falling down over time. The private healthcare sector is booming because people with money are desperate to dodge multi-year queues for elective surgery, not because they're longing for private rooms with pretty paintings on the walls.
It’s generous of those with money not to consume resources best allocated to those less well off than themselves
The genuinely rich have always done that. You'll find that a lot of the new customers are those emptying their savings accounts through sheer bloody desperation.
What we're going through at the moment is Americanisation by the back door. Jollies as always for the rich, financial destruction for the middle class, effective denial of treatment for the hard up.
We would, collectively, be better off with progressive taxation sufficient to fund the whole system properly, so private medicine could go back to being all cosmetic procedures and fancy suites for millionaires and royals. That's how a welfare state is meant to work - essentially, one giant collective insurance scheme that we all benefit from. Poverty, vast wealth inequalities, social and political instability - that's what you get when it ceases to function, and it's in nobody's interest.
Well, what a to do! After 8 hours or so get seen by the Royal Free Hospital. I don't mind the wait really. With a good long book it's ok and I think patients who shout at the medical staff about delays are the pits really. Triage and blood tests were done very fast.
Anyway the result is that I have a DVT in my leg and/or cellulitis though blood tests strongly suggest the former and inconsistent with the latter. Bugger.
They are treating me for both as no scan are possible during the weekend. So now I have a cannula in my arm, have had 3 different drugs pumped into me in a variety of ways, have to go back tomorrow for more and back on Monday for a scan to determine precisely what is wrong.
The docs and nurses loved the idea that all this had happened on my birthday. I told them that, yes, I liked to shake things up a bit, balloons and candles were a bit passé etc and, hey, I'd been up all night, tho' sadly without the sex, drugs or rock'n'roll.
And then when I left they said "well at least you've had the drugs now" so I replied that yes, I had and I'd be back tomorrow and Monday for the sex and the rock'n'roll. And you know what I was so bloody tired that I hope they didn't mind a v tired feeble woman pathetically and platonically flirting with them. The nurse was a rather sweet Greek chap and the doctor on the morning shift a charming Scottish lady.They did laugh. And, Christ, if you can't laugh at a time like this, when can you?
Many of the things Musk and Trump are doing will not be easy to reverse. It is often not a case of turning off taps that can easily be turned back on again. The longer this goes on, the greater the chances that institutions need to be rebuilt from the ground up. And with this lot in charge, they'll be rebuilt in the image of their founders.
Which is not good.
America is fucked. Rather than draining the swamp, they've turned the entire place into a quagmire.
It's grimly fascinating, in a "I'm glad I don't live there anymore" kinda way, except we are also going to feel the impacts to some extent
Musk’s next target is the CFPB (Consumer Finance Protection Bureau). A body set up after 2008 to have direct funding from the Federal Reserve so that it would be politically neutral & to act only in the interests of consumers.
I imagine it’s annoyed Musk in some way, so it’s for the chop, regardless of whether it’s a net benefit to the USA.
They clearly intend to break everything. “Autogolpe” the South Americans call it I believe?
I agree that the USA might be heading into chaos but there is a significant chance of blow back in the UK. The underlying story that politicians are corrupt and the civil service is useless and self serving will wash over to our shores. The speed of changes is overwhelming Starmer and there is a risk that the voter base may move very fast. Old alliances such as class are seen as irrelevant by the young.
*Attorney General Richard Hermer strengthened government legal advice on the Chagos islands to give a ‘clearer steer’ that the UK faced breaking international law, leading Keir Starmer to accelerate a deal, sources say.
*Advice inherited by Labour from the Tories said there was a risk international courts could rule that Britain should hand over sovereignty of the islands to Mauritius.
*But as part of his reforms updating the so-called ‘legal risk guidance’ given to ministers by government lawyers, Hermer gave a clearer steer that without a deal the UK would likely lose a future case and have to give up the islands to comply with such a ruling.
*Starmer accepted that upgraded advice and concluded the negotiations with Mauritius that started under the Tories.
*However, senior Conservative sources say there was a key difference: they say they would never have complied with any such ruling, and claim they had a secret strategy of pausing, delaying and never completing the Mauritius negotiations in order to kick the problem into the long grass.
*The Tory approach may have been legally debatable, but it was in the national interest, one said.
*Some Labour sources now wish they had taken a similar approach, blaming Hermer for tying Starmer’s hands with black and white advice. There are concerns in No10 and Cabinet about why they are spending so much capital on a deal that could cause a diplomatic row with the US with no political benefit at home.
*If Trump vetoes the deal, it means Hermer’s advice is that Starmer directly risks breaching international law. That would make Hermer’s position in cabinet untenable, Labour sources said
I would challenge this report on the easily verifiable fact that most of the relevant tribunals have already ruled in favour of Mauritian sovereignty:
Mr. 43, I can see the moral case for returning the island to the islanders.
I can see the pragmatic case for holding onto it.
There's no case whatsoever to hand it over to somewhere whose only link is administrative convenience during the British Empire. If that's the rationale, we might as well get Mauritius back.
Rather strange piece in Guardian - new homes still being built in flood risk areas in England, and dumping red tape will make it worse, and that's not counting climate change.
'But a push for housing growth by the prime minister, Keir Starmer, and the chancellor, Rachel Reeves, means tens of thousands of new homes will be built in areas at the highest risk of serious flooding unless the government intervenes, according to trends in the latest data.
Richard Dawson, professor of earth systems engineering at Newcastle University and a member of the climate change adaptation committee, told the Guardian that every year new homes were being built in high flood risk areas at a constant rate.
In 2020-21 and 2021-22, 7% of new properties were built on the highest-risk flood plain, known as zone 3, according to the Climate Change Committee’s most recent progress report.'
The United States shall promote the resettlement of Afrikaner refugees escaping government-sponsored race-based discrimination, including racially discriminatory property confiscation.
It's interesting how the evil old prick has had to finesse the language. He obviously wanted to say "White South African" but couldn't bring himself to be honest. Now, it appears to exclude South Africans of British and other European descent apart from Dutch.
Rather strange piece in Guardian - new homes still being built in flood risk areas in England, and dumping red tape will make it worse, and that's not counting climate change.
'But a push for housing growth by the prime minister, Keir Starmer, and the chancellor, Rachel Reeves, means tens of thousands of new homes will be built in areas at the highest risk of serious flooding unless the government intervenes, according to trends in the latest data.
Richard Dawson, professor of earth systems engineering at Newcastle University and a member of the climate change adaptation committee, told the Guardian that every year new homes were being built in high flood risk areas at a constant rate.
In 2020-21 and 2021-22, 7% of new properties were built on the highest-risk flood plain, known as zone 3, according to the Climate Change Committee’s most recent progress report.'
Isn't that just a very logical consequence of reducing planning bureaucracy? The overly bureaucratic system has been built for a reason. Removing barriers to housebuilding will lead to housebuilding where it was previously disallowed. Often that will have been for a reason.
ETA: not saying thats a bad thing, just that there are always tradeoffs.
Rather strange piece in Guardian - new homes still being built in flood risk areas in England, and dumping red tape will make it worse, and that's not counting climate change.
'But a push for housing growth by the prime minister, Keir Starmer, and the chancellor, Rachel Reeves, means tens of thousands of new homes will be built in areas at the highest risk of serious flooding unless the government intervenes, according to trends in the latest data.
Richard Dawson, professor of earth systems engineering at Newcastle University and a member of the climate change adaptation committee, told the Guardian that every year new homes were being built in high flood risk areas at a constant rate.
In 2020-21 and 2021-22, 7% of new properties were built on the highest-risk flood plain, known as zone 3, according to the Climate Change Committee’s most recent progress report.'
Isn't that just a very logical consequence of reducing planning bureaucracy? The overly bureaucratic system has been built for a reason. Removing barriers to housebuilding will lead to housebuilding where it was previously disallowed. Often that will have been for a reason.
ETA: not saying thats a bad thing, just that there are always tradeoffs.
Well, as the piece notes, insurance is an issue. The builders are already creating a moral hazard whereby the rest of us subsidide their profiteering on dud houses, and the insurance companies are getting twitchy about being piggy in the middle in that transaction. Sooner or later a buyer will be left with an uninsurable house.
Mr. 43, I can see the moral case for returning the island to the islanders.
I can see the pragmatic case for holding onto it.
There's no case whatsoever to hand it over to somewhere whose only link is administrative convenience during the British Empire. If that's the rationale, we might as well get Mauritius back.
Personally I don't care one way or the other about Chagos apart from a vague feeling that the islanders were shabbily treated. I do challenge the idea widely spread on here that the UK has the right to the islands under international law without a binding treaty with Mauritius. The case has been adjudicated in Mauritius favour by the Permanent Court of Arbitration, the International Court of Justice and the International Tribunal on the Law of the Sea. Slam Dunk.
You might say, so what? But we rely on the same institutions when we say, for example, that China is illegally occupying the South China Sea. We can make the legal problem go away through a treaty in exchange for hard cash. Which is what we would have to do anyway if we accepted the islands weren't ours. The question is how much money is worth it, which in turn partly depends on how much respect you have for international law.
The United States shall promote the resettlement of Afrikaner refugees escaping government-sponsored race-based discrimination, including racially discriminatory property confiscation.
The United States shall promote the resettlement of Afrikaner refugees escaping government-sponsored race-based discrimination, including racially discriminatory property confiscation.
President Musk looking after his own?
They're not even hiding the blatant self-interest now.
Mr. 43, I can see the moral case for returning the island to the islanders.
I can see the pragmatic case for holding onto it.
There's no case whatsoever to hand it over to somewhere whose only link is administrative convenience during the British Empire. If that's the rationale, we might as well get Mauritius back.
Personally I don't care one way or the other about Chagos apart from a vague feeling that the islanders were shabbily treated. I do challenge the idea widely spread on here that the UK has the right to the islands under international law without a binding treaty with Mauritius. The case has been adjudicated in Mauritius favour by the Permanent Court of Arbitration, the International Court of Justice and the International Tribunal on the Law of the Sea. Slam Dunk.
You might say, so what? But we rely on the same institutions when we say, for example, that China is illegally occupying the South China Sea. We can make the legal problem go away through a treaty in exchange for hard cash. Which is what we would have to do anyway if we accepted the islands weren't ours. The question is how much money is worth it, which in turn partly depends on how much respect you have for international law.
Asking the islanders what they want is clearly the most important thing but the one the Government has refused to do. Instead it is giving the islands to a different colonial power and paying for the privilege. This just seems insane.
The United States shall promote the resettlement of Afrikaner refugees escaping government-sponsored race-based discrimination, including racially discriminatory property confiscation.
Mr. 43, I can see the moral case for returning the island to the islanders.
I can see the pragmatic case for holding onto it.
There's no case whatsoever to hand it over to somewhere whose only link is administrative convenience during the British Empire. If that's the rationale, we might as well get Mauritius back.
Personally I don't care one way or the other about Chagos apart from a vague feeling that the islanders were shabbily treated. I do challenge the idea widely spread on here that the UK has the right to the islands under international law without a binding treaty with Mauritius. The case has been adjudicated in Mauritius favour by the Permanent Court of Arbitration, the International Court of Justice and the International Tribunal on the Law of the Sea. Slam Dunk.
You might say, so what? But we rely on the same institutions when we say, for example, that China is illegally occupying the South China Sea. We can make the legal problem go away through a treaty in exchange for hard cash. Which is what we would have to do anyway if we accepted the islands weren't ours. The question is how much money is worth it, which in turn partly depends on how much respect you have for international law.
Asking the islanders what they want is clearly the most important thing but the one the Government has refused to do. Instead it is giving the islands to a different colonial power and paying for the privilege. This just seems insane.
The Chagos should be sold to Dodgy Donald for $1 million $100 Billion.
Well, what a to do! After 8 hours or so get seen by the Royal Free Hospital. I don't mind the wait really. With a good long book it's ok and I think patients who shout at the medical staff about delays are the pits really. Triage and blood tests were done very fast.
Anyway the result is that I have a DVT in my leg and/or cellulitis though blood tests strongly suggest the former and inconsistent with the latter. Bugger.
They are treating me for both as no scan are possible during the weekend. So now I have a cannula in my arm, have had 3 different drugs pumped into me in a variety of ways, have to go back tomorrow for more and back on Monday for a scan to determine precisely what is wrong.
The docs and nurses loved the idea that all this had happened on my birthday. I told them that, yes, I liked to shake things up a bit, balloons and candles were a bit passé etc and, hey, I'd been up all night, tho' sadly without the sex, drugs or rock'n'roll.
And then when I left they said "well at least you've had the drugs now" so I replied that yes, I had and I'd be back tomorrow and Monday for the sex and the rock'n'roll. And you know what I was so bloody tired that I hope they didn't mind a v tired feeble woman pathetically and platonically flirting with them. The nurse was a rather sweet Greek chap and the doctor on the morning shift a charming Scottish lady.They did laugh. And, Christ, if you can't laugh at a time like this, when can you?
Still. Bugger!
Firstly, get well soon.
Secondly, get yourself checked for the gene mutation that causes Factor V Leiden. It renders you more likely to clot
Thirdly, get yourself checked for undiagnosed diabetes. Diabetes can change your blood characteristics and cause problems with veins and stuff. Theresa May developed it in her 50s out of a clear blue sky.
Fourthly: any scratches? I don't know if you have a cat but I seem to recall you have a garden and flowers have thorns. Infection loves cuts in dirty places.
Exactly what I thought when I saw the original 'I am in the cult' tweet.
Suspect all is not well behind the scenes...
Bill Kristol @BillKristol · 1h Elon’s desperate. He knows that Trump knows that Elon’s undercutting him and damaging him.
And Elon’s profession of love won’t save him.
Musk is useful, but how much does Trump actually need him? It's not like he will suddenly turn in to a powerful opponent of Trump's if he gets cut down to size.
I suspect it is not Trump but Vance who is opposed to Musk, and mainstream Republicans who are nervous of what he is doing. Permanent revolution is not why they entered politics.
Is there any evidence for that suspicion ?
All this 'Trump is about to ditch Musk and moderate' stuff sounds like wishcasting to me.
For an alternate vibe. The White House just issued an executive order on South Africa that includes admitting Afrikaner South Africans as refugees to the United States https://x.com/Bencjacobs/status/1888000443172721034
More ethnic cleansing - but the opportunity to come to the USA? Wonder how many other areas of the world will get a similar offer.
Mr. 43, I can see the moral case for returning the island to the islanders.
I can see the pragmatic case for holding onto it.
There's no case whatsoever to hand it over to somewhere whose only link is administrative convenience during the British Empire. If that's the rationale, we might as well get Mauritius back.
Personally I don't care one way or the other about Chagos apart from a vague feeling that the islanders were shabbily treated. I do challenge the idea widely spread on here that the UK has the right to the islands under international law without a binding treaty with Mauritius. The case has been adjudicated in Mauritius favour by the Permanent Court of Arbitration, the International Court of Justice and the International Tribunal on the Law of the Sea. Slam Dunk.
You might say, so what? But we rely on the same institutions when we say, for example, that China is illegally occupying the South China Sea. We can make the legal problem go away through a treaty in exchange for hard cash. Which is what we would have to do anyway if we accepted the islands weren't ours. The question is how much money is worth it, which in turn partly depends on how much respect you have for international law.
Asking the islanders what they want is clearly the most important thing but the one the Government has refused to do. Instead it is giving the islands to a different colonial power and paying for the privilege. This just seems insane.
Because this is entirely about an American base in the Indian Ocean. No-one cares about the Chagossians I'm afraid. If they did, they would close the base and give them their islands back.
It's amazing how much credence folk give to a Telegraph hatchet job on Labour - they're two a penny. Labour won't agree to paying any reparations. People may not like Starmer or Lammy, but they're not mad.
What? Starmer himself agreed that there needed to be a serious discussion about it.
Towards the end of the Telegraph hatchet job linked to: At the summit, Sir Keir resisted pressure from member states to prioritise putting reparations on the agenda. Downing Street said that the UK would reject calls for reparations, and would not be issuing an apology for Britain’s role in the slave trade.
He signed the memorandum
Commonwealth leaders have agreed the "time has come" for a conversation about reparations for the slave trade, despite the UK's desire to keep the subject off the agenda at a two-day summit in Samoa. A document signed by 56 heads of government, including UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, acknowledges calls for "discussions on reparatory justice" for the "abhorrent" transatlantic slave trade.
British sailors manned ships taking slaves to the Americas. Those sailors will have been emotionally scarred by that experience, and it is right that their families (i.e. decedents) receive proper compensation.
Ultimately, the transatlantic slave trade existed because the US (and its predecessors) were addicted to slave labour, and therefore it is right that it is the US that pays. Simply: we, Britain, were victims too of America's addition to slavery.
Some twisted logic there, but that is the nature of the game being played anyway.
Comments
As to what the Republicans will look like after Trump, I’ve no clue. Here, the Conservatives are just seven months on from the biggest defeat in their history - what they will become in the months and years ahead is unfathomable.
A government decision to scrap tariffs on Chinese e-bikes coming into the UK has been described as a "kick in the teeth for British manufacturing". Border taxes were imposed on Chinese e-bikes following Brexit, keeping the UK in line with the EU, but the Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds has accepted a recommendation to lift them on non-folding e-bikes from Friday.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c75z9925lelo
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/feb/08/more-than-100000-homes-in-england-could-be-built-in-highest-risk-flood-zones
What could possibly go wrong.
A Foreign Office spokesman said there were no plans for a ministerial meeting and no date set for a UK-Caricom meeting.
The spokesman said: “The Government’s position on this issue has not changed – we do not pay reparations.
Barbados alone wants several trillion pounds. Charities and NGOs favour reparations too as they will be the ones to help ‘manage’ the process. Hence the recent Oxfam report which demanded reparations for India.
He said Biden "could not be trusted with sensitive information", citing a justice department inquiry into the Democrat's storage of classified files, which concluded that while there was no need to press criminal charges, Biden had a poor memory.
The article says ‘no plans’ for a meeting. Of course plans can charge.
Then a dentist's appointment at 11.
My choice of book to read during this dreary night was about the Hundred Years War, which with its discussions of interminable sieges seems grimly appropriate.
Now onto Joan of Arc .....
People waiting were very well behaved though, apart from one man snoring loudly. Bad enough when Husband does it. But a strange man doing it is a bit much ....
(Protecting Brompton is stupid, fwiw. I have two and love them both, but they should compete on quality and innovation. Not be protected as some local champion.)
Good luck.
I thought the important thing with clots was prompt intervention…
(I don't know, that's why I'm asking.)
(I know no details of the case - whether it is merely dubious behaviour that is a technical breach or whether it is a serious crime).
Sympathies
I hope it's a false alarm.
GPS-free visual-inertial navigation in real time on Raspberry Pi 5 with a consumer-grade IMU and camera (and this is not even the slowest CPU this runs on!)
https://x.com/oseiskar/status/1887889319253180855
This is only going to keep getting worse. Of the available sources of revenue, the Government has either bled them white already or is too afraid to go after them. And the population is ballooning through immigration and more and more of it is getting old, obese and knackered. But we knew this already. Britain is a lost cause.
https://www.salon.com/2025/02/07/why-the-president-elon-musk-mockery-doesnt-seem-to-bother-donald/
I distinctly remember an advert showing A&E would be empty if we did that...
It can be done. Will it? Not sure. But we're not yet a lost cause.
In October 2023 I went to my doctor with a swollen left thigh and was sent by him direct to A & E with a suspected DVT. I arrived at 5.30pm, was quickly triaged, then waited in terrible pain for 14 hours in a wheelchair until seeing the A & E doctor at 7.30am who immediately admitted me and I had an urgent ultrltrasound which confirmed my DVT but also found an aneurysm
I stated treatment immediately with blood thinners and my DVT dissolved over time, though I have annual screening for my aneurysm
I was checked every few hours whilst waiting in A & E but it was very unpleasant and worrying
I an sure @Cyclefree will receive excellent treatment once seen by the A & E doctor, but the wait time is simply unacceptable
All INS experience integral drift, exactly how much depends on the quality and sophistication of the device. The one in the Sea Harrier was made out bits Ferranti had left over in the stationary cupboard and drifted about 1 deg/hour in azimuth and 0.5 deg/hour in inclination. That's a lot at 500 knots.
That's the reason long range precision weapons can't rely on INS and have to supplement with other methods like stellar cartography (Trident) or radar ground mapping (Storm Shadow). So, no, it's not 'relatively easy' to weaponise this into a long range drone.
All this 'Trump is about to ditch Musk and moderate' stuff sounds like wishcasting to me.
For an alternate vibe.
The White House just issued an executive order on South Africa that includes admitting Afrikaner South Africans as refugees to the United States
https://x.com/Bencjacobs/status/1888000443172721034
The fact that it can be done with very cheap consumer grade components is what's interesting.
https://x.com/wartranslated/status/1887920064717787237
It's also interesting that FPV drones obviously meant for combat are called/translated as 'humanitarian aid'.
https://rcem.ac.uk/almost-300-deaths-a-week-in-2023-associated-with-long-ae-waits-despite-uec-recovery-plan/
Attendance are up (10% year on year at my Trust, but funding is flat, by block contract so we are just expected to absorb the costs), but the real problem is the lack of beds to admit to. That lack of beds is why the 62 day cancer treatment target is missed too. Cancer patients are prioritised, but even so get cancelled.
We probably simply don't have enough beds overall, but the biggest problem is the failure to sort out Social Care. Around a quarter of our beds are occupied by patients awaiting discharge. The problem of ED comes back to that.
It is (I think) inevitable that some of those things will turn out to eventually be not very popular at all.
That is the point when we discover who is really in charge.
An older society is a poorer society - and no, we can't solve the problem through importing more workers, because population growth is one giant Ponzi scheme that stretches available resources even thinner and just begets more old people further down the line. The only sustainable way to deal with an ageing society is through redistribution, and for the very distorted UK economy that means less generous state pension hikes and substantially heavier taxation of housing and inheritances, so as to plug the holes in the health and social care system and provide better support for struggling workers and especially children. The chances of that happening are almost nil.
I don't think another party will run with it after May's disastrous campaign of 2017.
I commented here at the time that it was a good plan, though clearly it went down badly. I didn't vote Conservative because of Brexit, but she didn't implement it despite winning.
You can't cut that many wires in the US economy without the risk of a catastrophic failure.
His latest wheeze is to shutter the agency that stops consumers getting ripped off. Even the deplorables don't like getting shafted (well some of them)
Which is not good.
America is fucked. Rather than draining the swamp, they've turned the entire place into a quagmire.
Looks as if Musk's team may be gutting consumer and financial fraud protections in the U.S, already much weaker than here. This sort of thimg is going on throughout the U.S govt.
https://bsky.app/profile/rbreich.bsky.social/post/3lhmdabd4pl2v
In any case, this is just the first version.
The point is that it gives long range capability in GPS denied environments, for pennies.
Well if they were on stilts, it might protect against the flooding.
The Triple Lock has to go, perhaps replacing it with the single lock of tying it to median wages increase. Property should be taxed more, but I would favour an annual property tax rather than the rather lumpy Stamp Duty and IHT. Apart from raising money, it would free up housing by encouraging downsizing and also get people investing in more productive assets like businesses.
As long as people go berserk at any mention of tax increases, it's a blooming hard problem to fix. One of those bits of national dishonesty that makes me think that Brecht had a point.
That doesn't mean that the whole system has imploded - yet - but more of it is falling down over time. The private healthcare sector is booming because people with money are desperate to dodge multi-year queues for elective surgery, not because they're longing for private rooms with pretty paintings on the walls.
I was glad, and mildly surprised, we suffered no flooding back in 2007. I think if this house ever gets flooded that's a sign Yorkshire's underwater.
Meanwhile, over here in the U.K, Reform and Farage's most regular foghorn is GB News, funded ny the large financial interests of the Legatum Institute.
That said, with the way the climate is going I'd be wary of buying anywhere near a river.
Money is a generalised ability to buy stuff. If it's the game you are interested in playing, why not use your money to buy the tools to acquire power, and then use your power to acquire more money?
Hence regulations about bribery and about campaign finance. In well-run countries, anyway.
When you get run over, or fracture a hip in a fall, or have a heart attack over the latest poll there is nowhere else to go other than Casualty at St Elsewhere NHS Trust.
It's why it is in the interest of even the wealthiest of us to sort it out.
None of this would matter if the land were half empty, but England already has a higher population density than the Netherlands and most of Scotland and Wales consist of remote upland areas of limited practical use. We can't solve the housing crisis by building another London in the middle of the Cairngorms.
At the moment we can't cope without yet more immigrants because of skills gaps, but in the long run the taps must be turned off. That will be a difficult and painful process - fewer taxpayers means shorter retirements for current workers and stingier benefits for current pensioners - which means it won't happen, and we'll end up completely stuffed to the gunwales with tens of millions more bloody people. This is unquestionably an awful outcome, but we will have brought it upon ourselves.
Exclusive in @BloombergUK Saturday read
*Attorney General Richard Hermer strengthened government legal advice on the Chagos islands to give a ‘clearer steer’ that the UK faced breaking international law, leading Keir Starmer to accelerate a deal, sources say.
*Advice inherited by Labour from the Tories said there was a risk international courts could rule that Britain should hand over sovereignty of the islands to Mauritius.
*But as part of his reforms updating the so-called ‘legal risk guidance’ given to ministers by government lawyers, Hermer gave a clearer steer that without a deal the UK would likely lose a future case and have to give up the islands to comply with such a ruling.
*Starmer accepted that upgraded advice and concluded the negotiations with Mauritius that started under the Tories.
*However, senior Conservative sources say there was a key difference: they say they would never have complied with any such ruling, and claim they had a secret strategy of pausing, delaying and never completing the Mauritius negotiations in order to kick the problem into the long grass.
*The Tory approach may have been legally debatable, but it was in the national interest, one said.
*Some Labour sources now wish they had taken a similar approach, blaming Hermer for tying Starmer’s hands with black and white advice. There are concerns in No10 and Cabinet about why they are spending so much capital on a deal that could cause a diplomatic row with the US with no political benefit at home.
*If Trump vetoes the deal, it means Hermer’s advice is that Starmer directly risks breaching international law. That would make Hermer’s position in cabinet untenable, Labour sources said
I imagine that some administrative tinkering might be able to create efficiencies and save some cash, but it's not going to build dozens of new hospitals, hundreds of new care homes and train and pay the staff decent wages to operate them. It always comes back to money. If folk want stuff to start working they're going to have to pay for it.
Hermer should never have been allowed anywhere near this by the government. It looks corrupt, regardless of the reality.
I imagine it’s annoyed Musk in some way, so it’s for the chop, regardless of whether it’s a net benefit to the USA.
They clearly intend to break everything. “Autogolpe” the South Americans call it I believe?
https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/02/addressing-egregious-actions-of-the-republic-of-south-africa/
The United States shall promote the resettlement of Afrikaner refugees escaping government-sponsored race-based discrimination, including racially discriminatory property confiscation.
What we're going through at the moment is Americanisation by the back door. Jollies as always for the rich, financial destruction for the middle class, effective denial of treatment for the hard up.
We would, collectively, be better off with progressive taxation sufficient to fund the whole system properly, so private medicine could go back to being all cosmetic procedures and fancy suites for millionaires and royals. That's how a welfare state is meant to work - essentially, one giant collective insurance scheme that we all benefit from. Poverty, vast wealth inequalities, social and political instability - that's what you get when it ceases to function, and it's in nobody's interest.
Anyway the result is that I have a DVT in my leg and/or cellulitis though blood tests strongly suggest the former and inconsistent with the latter. Bugger.
They are treating me for both as no scan are possible during the weekend. So now I have a cannula in my arm, have had 3 different drugs pumped into me in a variety of ways, have to go back tomorrow for more and back on Monday for a scan to determine precisely what is wrong.
The docs and nurses loved the idea that all this had happened on my birthday. I told them that, yes, I liked to shake things up a bit, balloons and candles were a bit passé etc and, hey, I'd been up all night, tho' sadly without the sex, drugs or rock'n'roll.
And then when I left they said "well at least you've had the drugs now" so I replied that yes, I had and I'd be back tomorrow and Monday for the sex and the rock'n'roll. And you know what I was so bloody tired that I hope they didn't mind a v tired feeble woman pathetically and platonically flirting with them. The nurse was a rather sweet Greek chap and the doctor on the morning shift a charming Scottish lady.They did laugh. And, Christ, if you can't laugh at a time like this, when can you?
Still. Bugger!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chagos_Archipelago_sovereignty_dispute
I can see the pragmatic case for holding onto it.
There's no case whatsoever to hand it over to somewhere whose only link is administrative convenience during the British Empire. If that's the rationale, we might as well get Mauritius back.
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/feb/08/more-than-100000-homes-in-england-could-be-built-in-highest-risk-flood-zones
'But a push for housing growth by the prime minister, Keir Starmer, and the chancellor, Rachel Reeves, means tens of thousands of new homes will be built in areas at the highest risk of serious flooding unless the government intervenes, according to trends in the latest data.
Richard Dawson, professor of earth systems engineering at Newcastle University and a member of the climate change adaptation committee, told the Guardian that every year new homes were being built in high flood risk areas at a constant rate.
In 2020-21 and 2021-22, 7% of new properties were built on the highest-risk flood plain, known as zone 3, according to the Climate Change Committee’s most recent progress report.'
NEW THREAD
ETA: not saying thats a bad thing, just that there are always tradeoffs.
You might say, so what? But we rely on the same institutions when we say, for example, that China is illegally occupying the South China Sea. We can make the legal problem go away through a treaty in exchange for hard cash. Which is what we would have to do anyway if we accepted the islands weren't ours. The question is how much money is worth it, which in turn partly depends on how much respect you have for international law.
Asking the islanders what they want is clearly the most important thing but the one the Government has refused to do. Instead it is giving the islands to a different colonial power and paying for the privilege. This just seems insane.
Secondly, get yourself checked for the gene mutation that causes Factor V Leiden. It renders you more likely to clot
Thirdly, get yourself checked for undiagnosed diabetes. Diabetes can change your blood characteristics and cause problems with veins and stuff. Theresa May developed it in her 50s out of a clear blue sky.
Fourthly: any scratches? I don't know if you have a cat but I seem to recall you have a garden and flowers have thorns. Infection loves cuts in dirty places.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Factor_V_Leiden