Westministenders: Conference Cult

[RedToothBrush]

Is it over yet?

The Tory Party Conference is in full swing in the Manchester Rain, and is proving to be its usual fun.

Johnson is caught up in all sorts of allegations of abuses of power - the non-declaration of his "friendship" to a busty blonde whom was getting a large tax payer grant, and then there the Odey question after his sister said he was under the control of the Hedge Funders.

And thats before we talk about the 40 hospitals, his provocative language and how many times he can say the word surrender.

There is lots of distancing from Lyton Crosby. And accusations that Johnson has gone 'rogue' only listening to the wisdom of Cummings and Symonds.

The Queen apparently has asked for advice as to under what circumstance she can dismiss a PM.

AND NO ONE IS EVEN TALKING ABOUT A DEAL.

Thanks @flouncyfanny I hope so too.
Higher pet food costs and vet drugs are likely to be issues in a no deal situation.

Sam Lowe @ sammarclowe
Meet my good friend, a map.

I still can’t believe this isn’t a joke.

Caught up with end of last thread
Re vaccinations; the conspiracy theorists (who knew the Tories would have so many amid their ranks with the Leavers, huh?) are those who lean towards holistic therapists and home schooling. Arguably using unregulated healthcare - v. mc now so need £ - gives one a feeling of superiority and a more willingness to believe what you are receiving is somehow better than the free stuff the hoy-paloy chow down on. These people, as I said likely to home school, will not worry about not sending Elephants-Breath along to Reception as they will be at homestead basket weaving huts to survive autumn in whilst praying to the moon-gods . My worry is that it will increase unregulated home schooling, by exactly those people who would do better to socialise their children...

Feeling bad about depicting a hippyish conspiracy theorist when we all know these are varied and even cover some nurses who I have overhead saying that they tell patients they personally wouldn't vaccinate their children. This is surely somewhere to start; the fear of Big Pharma (often rightly placed). Authoritarian routes to push vaccinations will likely increase mis-trust among the more swivel-eyed and it is therefore quite surprising to me this is a policy they deemed would be popular, given their new target audience.

Pmk thanks Red

Men don’t necessarily have to be charming and funny to get women to go to bed with them. Sleazy and persistent often does the trick, helped by relative wealth.

This Ireland nonsense is getting genuinely scary.

Who builds these border posts? Who protects the people building them and then staffing them? What happens after the first attack on border infrastructure? What happens when people start dying?

It seems to me that even remainers haven't even started to comprehend what happens in a no-deal (or if Johnson's latest nonsense was implemented, which comes to the same thing). How long until the border is militarised?

NB it doesn't even have to be paramilitaries attacking the border. What happens if angry farmers with large machines at their disposal take a leaf out of the French farmers' playbook and opt for direct action?

And apparently some women are attracted to powerful men.
Perhaps after a downfall from on high, they’re far less attractive.
(I expect we shall see.)

Like emilyontmoor I worked in a Male dominated industry in the 80s - heavy engineering - and comments /touching/ trying to touch were an almost everyday event. I don't think younger women always appreciate how far we have come in some respects so don't understand why it was so hard to speak up. I do remember one incident with a smile. I was discussing complaints about a particular difficult female member of my team with my director and fellow managers and one said what she needed was "a good rogering" I just told them that one of them would have to volunteer as clearly I lacked the relevant equipment and gave them my disapproving look. Apologies all round and they never made that sort of comment in my hearing again, but it was normal talking in an industry where, in a factory with nearly 1000 employees there were only 2 women in management/supervisory positions.

Pmk,,

Irish response to "proposals"

www.rte.ie/news/2019/0930/1079268-reaction-non-paper/

I don't think there's a font big enough to write that "NO" in ...

Gorgeous elite felines, skin

That DMZ would very quickly become a very MZ

re possible violence in Scotland

My concern is a nightmare scenario I've posted before, imo feasible under an authoritarian govt:

• No Deal causes support for Independence to become a majority
• Govt refuses a referendum
• Results in mass demonstrations, civil disobedience, strikes in Scotland
• Mass fights Indie vs Unionists / Orange order, especially around football grounds, Rangers vs Celtic
• Govt sends in armed troops against peaceful Indie demonstrators or strikers - to show who is boss
• By cockup or design, troops gun down unarmed civilians ==> Scotland's Bloody Sunday
• SNP loses support to party that supports violence, like SDLP did to Sinn Féin ==> Scotland's Troubles

And of course the full might of the British state ranged against Scotland, as in NI:
internment, torture, military collusion with Loyalist terrorism

The risks with the border proposals are not even just about violence they set the normalization of NI back 30 years. They will destroy the economy and extremism and criminality thrive when there is no functioning society and economy, no jobs.

I'm not sure if BoZo thinks the EU27 are collectively stupid or that he can pull the wool over their eyes or what! But they know what game he's playing and, if an extension is asked for, as per Benn, regardless of what other nonsense comes with it, they will decide on whether to a) extend and b) for how long on the basis of what is best for the EU, including the island of Ireland. Rest assured, they're way beyond doing anything for the benefit of the fuckwits in government.

I do think that BoZo is very much painted into a corner now, with all of his 'die in a ditch' rhetoric. Anything other than leaving at the end of October, whether by crash out or deal, makes him look weak and unable to deliver. If his approval ratings are sinking now, let's see how they are on 1st Nov if we're still in.

If we have crashed out, he can't have his GE until the effects of no deal are obvious (which Mistigri and I have been referring to for a while and DGR picked up on yesterday), and if people aren't able to do their usual pre-Christmas massive shops, I foresee trouble ahead (for BoZo).

Everything he's tried to do to make it work for him has failed. So now it looks like he's going to have to choose his ditch or eat his words.

I am more upset than I thought possible with the sheer callousness of Johnson’s government in suggesting doing this to people.
I don’t know why I am surprised. There is plenty to complain about with regard to the Irish government but stuck between the US and the UK they look like saints or at least decent human beings.

BCF I can't see that happening.

I do see sectarian trouble as has already happened.

But on the whole Scotland is not an extremist society.

There may be some protests that could turn violent I guess but no not in the way you suggest above.

Scottish Nationalist are not the same as English Nationalists.

Having said that, scotland doesn't deserve any trouble.

I fully agree with your analysis RBT.

And because this destabilisation has been going on for years, I’m wondering if there is any way back...

On a larger scale, as interests are basically economics and in the hands of very few oligarchs, I’m wondering if we have any chances to save our planet...

I agree. I don't see Scotland descending into sectarianism. I see it just leaving the UK if doing so is a better prospect.

But so, this is it, right? Early October...this thing goes out officially on the 4th, the PM presents the first proposal for a revised deal without backstop per se. Two weeks to sweet talk Angela and Leo about the need to compromise. They’ll have to decide if it’s lipstick or real substance. If they nod, at the meeting on the 14th (?) everybody focuses on it. If they don’t, its panic mode. On our side and on their side, a bit, because no matter what the checks on goods at the border will fall onto the ROI....

TV is barely surviving with BJ being interviewed by BBC Breakfast's Dan.

What. a. load. of. fucking. bollocks. and. waffle. and. deflection.

I'm not going to even bother trying to go go through the discrepancies in what he is saying. I'd be here forever.