Westminstenders: War and Weirdos

[RedToothBrush]

With weirdos set to run No10 and Trump seemingly having started a new war in the Middle East, 2020 already looks set to be a cracking year.

To start off your year, it turns out that chinese curse about interesting times is actually a fallacy...

en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/May_you_live_in_interesting_times

Happy New Year.

May we make 2030...

I'm all in favour of them leaving the Royal Family. The fewer, the better, quite frankly.

It's the way it's being done that's the issue. I've decades of experience (like many on Mumsnet) in related fields and am enjoying reading between the lines, as well as being rather horrified at how it's being handled.

So they'll be needing some products to work towards becoming slightly less spongeing parasites.

Can't do biscuits. Dad's cornered the market and will send the Welsh Guards round if there's bother.

Teatowels and Mugs are a given, but they'll need some bigger ticket items.

How about Harry&Meg's travel cases, flight bags and dvt socks for those tiresome long hauls on the taxpayer-funded Learjet.

We see the genius that is Clive Lewis is calling for a referendum on the Royal Family......one of those times of 'chin-resting-in-palm-of-hand' moments.

We see the genius that is Clive Lewis is calling for a referendum on the Royal Family......one of those times of 'chin-resting-in-palm-of-hand' moments.

Said for ages the Royal Family were vulnerable and there would be calls to become a republic.

The idea that we should decide by referendum is one where you wonder which rock Clive Lewis has been under for the last three years though.

Anyway....

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-51068774
Sinn Féin supports deal to restore devolution in Northern Ireland

The DUP backed the deal earlier today.

So it looks like Stormont might actually reopen after 3 years!

That HAS to be good news.

Said for ages the Royal Family were vulnerable and there would be calls to become a republic.

Especially now the fact that the monarch has fuck all power has been exposed so publicly.

By all means keep a symbolic monarch to pose for coins and notes and the small stuff (on their own dollar, mind you. I'm not paying for the freeloaders). But give us a head of state we can vote in or out and whose position isn't predicated on who their parents were.

Yup, Stormont is set to re open

Which, I believe, means they will have new elections soon

which will be a barrel of laughs when those who caused the deadlock get held to account ......
I shall go and buy some more popcorn

Are we still on the RF...

According to Tom Bradby the RF have known of the plan for some time. It was because details were about to leak that it was announced precipitately - which would explain the timing. Also apparently there are plans for a ‘slimmed down’ monarchy of which Harry wouldn’t be part anyway.

No idea if any of that is true. But it balances some of the battier assertions.

I know everyone is a fan of Katherine - but she never had a career, as with her sister it was about marrying well.

I am not. I think she's pathetic having the only ambition to marry well, especially when you consider that her parents built up a business jointly.

I have much more time for Meghan - she earned her success.

All this RF talk - Squirrel - what is being hidden from US?

The idea that we should decide by referendum is one where you wonder which rock Clive Lewis has been under for the last three years though.

Now I like that idea. Have one where the result is 52:48% in favour of getting rid of them, and let's see whether this is an overwhelming result, and the people have spoken. Or if it's just dismissed as advisory.

The thing about voting for a head of state though ... you could end up with someone as lovely as Boris Johnson. And we would know a lot more about them than the royals, and not in a good way.

I see Trump is claiming someone "stole" his Nobel Peace Prize.

Why am I (again) reminded of "Veep" and Selina Meyers bringing peace to Tibet ?

The thing about voting for a head of state though ... you could end up with someone as lovely as Boris Johnson. And we would know a lot more about them than the royals, and not in a good way.

I am sure there are many ways for a republic to choose a head of state. After all even the US doesn't directly elect the President.

Anyway, at my age, I'm past caring. When I naively suggested (following DFs sentiments) that the Queen/Monarchy were an outdated inegalitarian relic that should be dismantled asap, I was beaten soundly about the head and told about the mystical powers the Monarch had to prevent the UK ever becoming "like Germany". (We can dismiss the tourism "argument" as a load of bollocks in advance, here).

Only guess what ? When it fucking mattered, we suddenly get told that no, the Monarch has no power. The cannot act without the express permission of the government and are really just a very expensive way to get a piece of headgear from Buck house to Westminster.

Well fuck that, we have Uber these days. Let's lose the Monarchy. Once and for all.

The thing about voting for a head of state though ... you could end up with someone as lovely as Boris Johnson

We could have judge’s panel to balance the people’s vote. That’s what we should have had in the referendum. Judi Dench, David Beckham, Robbie Williams and Graham Norton.

I was beaten soundly about the head and told about the mystical powers the Monarch had to prevent the UK ever becoming "like Germany".

Peregrina
Katherine decided early on that her 'job' would be to produce the next generation Royals in a manner that would fit the world they would grow up in.
The family are an anachronism, but a slimmed down less expensive version is better than President Bozo.
From what I can gather she accepts that her 'job' is to be there when the Royal family goes through the seismic changes that will follow Brenda's death as Brian is much, much less popular.

The fact that she chose not to have a career is entirely her own business, in the same way that lots of other tall, slim, expensively educated women do.

So it looks like Stormont might actually reopen after 3 years! Thank God

Are the taxpayers supporting other slim, expensively educated women?

Metaphorically beaten about the head, I should have said for the avoidance of doubt

Peregrina
Considering how many of their husbands get away with shenanegins like Non Dom and offshore LLP, the cost of Katherine to the taxpayer is comparable

And on a different angle of how policing works in the UK
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2020/jan/10/xr-extinction-rebellion-listed-extremist-ideology-police-prevent-scheme-guidance

And the council tax on this property will be ....
£1507 per year
www.theguardian.com/business/2020/jan/10/chinese-tycoon-cheung-chung-kiu-agrees-buy-london-hyde-park-mansion-record-fee

Good news about Samira Ahmed's pay discrimination case. She's a brilliant presenter.

LQ, I just think it's sad that a University educated woman can't do more than have children and be an expensive clothes horse.

With Diana it was understandable, she was poorly if expensively educated and wouldn't have had many options.

It's as though the feminist movement that I was heavily involved with in the Seventies never happened.

Metaphorically beaten about the head, I should have said for the avoidance of doubt Thank goodness for that I forgot you were the master of hyperbole