Westminstenders: Where are we now?

[RedToothBrush]

Twenty thousand people
Cross Bösebrücke
Fingers are crossed
Just in case
Walking the dead

Where are we now, where are we now?
The moment you know, you know, you know

Just that.

Don't really want to reflect more than that right now.

Raab C Nitwit flying solo this afternoon. Boffins now surplus to requirements. We shall 'balance the science with the needs of business.'

Red walls tory voters with buyers regret??

Boo fucking hoo

You all know how FB/YouTube works ... this guy popped up on my feed talking a shit load of sense about a lot of stuff, including Brexit and Ireland

tbf, Merkel also chose to relax lockdown and open schools early, 4 May, against the recommendations of her public health advisers,
notably the chief virologist Christian Drosten

He and some other experts wanted to keep lockdown until R= was 0.2 or 0.3,
but he said he accepted that Merkel had to consider more things than just public health.

He also said she was always calm, highly intelligent & understood the science
These qualities are essential when deciding to balance economy and education vs public health - especially when not all the scientists agree

Some other scientists wanted to end lockdown quickly and in particular to reopen schools
All agreed however on banning potential super-spreader events such as those with large crowds - carnivals, large shows, audiences at some sport events

DG Ive subbed to Beau for quite a while the guy talks sense constantly

Labour still 8 pts behind, but Starmer now level with BJ:

YouGov@YouGov

Just six weeks in as Labour leader, Keir Starmer has pulled level with Boris Johnson on our best PM question.

Starmer 33% (+1)
Johnson 33% (-4)

https://yougov.co.uk/topics/politics/articles-reports/2020/06/15/voting-intention-con-45-lab-37-11-12-jun?

US police deliberately mace 7-year-old after peaceful demonstrators pray
What is also concerning is the medical techs not helping

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/jun/15/outrage-video-police-mace-child-seattle-protest

What upsets him most, Avery said, is that officers and a group of emergency medical technicians standing about a block away did not step in to help.

gloomy pmk

Nice curveball from SCOTUS over LBGTQwhatever rights ..

Mockers - I think NZ is far more interested in closer countries.... China, Japan, Malaysia, Indonesia..... Middle East....

They will always do business with the UK - particularly for lamb.....but they have worked really hard developing markets around the Pacific rim. Remember to service those markets in normal times it's just a 8-10 hour flight. Quite different from the 26 hours to get up here.

Trump trying to stop publication of John Bolton's book, due out 23 June

Bolton's revelations shouldn't be news to anyone paying attention,
but Trump evidently fears some Republican voters may believe Bolton (and stay home on election day)

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/jun/15/john-bolton-book-trump-sues-to-block-tell-all

“What Bolton saw astonished him,” his publisher said.
“A president for whom getting re-elected was the only thing that mattered, even if it meant endangering or weakening the nation.

“Bolton argues that the House committed impeachment malpractice by keeping their prosecution focused narrowly on Ukraine
when Trump’s Ukraine-like transgressions existed across the full range of his foreign policy

• and Bolton documents exactly what those were, and attempts by him and others in the administration to raise alarms about them.”

BJ: "It's very clear what the UK needs"

He still doesn't get it We are a 3rd country now that we are outside the EU and what the UK "needs" is not the what the EU "has" to offer - or indeed, is not what it has any intention of offering.

Very down this morning with the appointment Munira Mirza being appointed to lead the race inquiry...
Then news that Tory MP's have been given quotes from spiked magazine .
The UK is about to get really fucking nasty.

I reckon he very much gets it but can't afford to admit that his whole approach to Brexit has been ill-conceived. So instead he plays the blame game for the Leave voters' entertainment and edification.

@baroqueandblue, so Johnson just keeps digging?

Sounds about right.

Very down this morning with the appointment Munira Mirza being appointed to lead the race inquiry...

A racism inquiry led by someone who doesn’t believe in racism, great innit.

And so it goes...
"Dismay after UK fails to join EU-led scheme to revive tourism."

www.theguardian.com/business/2020/jun/16/dismay-uk-fails-join-eu-scheme-revive-tourism

Trump's niece plans to dish the dirt in her book.
Fingers crossed for November.

Brexit - I do think its another down to the wire session that will be sorted after the November vote

LGBT - the Supreme court ruling is good. One of the test cases was a guy who joined a weekend gay softball team and was fired from his Monday to Friday job.

UK Racism - its is such a cloth eared appointment I think Boris is hoping somebody fires the starting gun on July 24th

@AuldAlliance I suspect the UK knows that it simply isn't possible, given our shoddy data, re-writing of the Levels and lack of plan to join in with that given the article states:
"The European commission has launched an app and website that provide travellers with real-time information about coronavirus rules and the status of infections in each European country."
and
“... provided they make the request and, secondly, they commit to providing updated and regular information to the website … "

Besides UK needs flexibility to be able to turn on a pin to cover Dominic Cummings, remember?

Poulet - with the added advantage of being able to say you can't join EU schemes if you're not in the EU, to hide all those other v relevant reasons you mention...

www.theguardian.com/football/2020/jun/15/boris-johnson-rejects-marcus-rashfords-plea-for-free-school-meals-over-summer

“This is not about politics; this is about humanity. Political affiliations aside, can we not all agree that no child should be going to bed hungry? Food poverty is a pandemic in England that could span generations if we don’t course correct now.”

I think the last line is interesting, particularly given that we know Brexit will cause food shortages. This is Starmer's long-term battle I feel. Getting it into the public's consciousness now means it will be that problem that won't go away. It's perfect for the target audience of Leavers (themes of footy, young male, footy comparisons with stadium to clarify, not being afraid of handouts, community spirit) and ties the race battle with the poverty battle to show who is in power are the ones holding back.

This is what I meant by the far right fighting too many battles.

Exactly Auld, that has been a driver for Brexit for the politicians all along; less accountability across the board.

Terrible thing is I feel I've been conditioned to immediately expect disappointment when things start going well for anyone other than the bastards

Even bastards trip up eventually, @JeSuisPoulet

I confess to being mildly optimistic about the American elections when even the Republicans are running ads against Trump. The most dangerous period will be if he loses and then tries to tear down everything.

Over here, I work on the principle we live in a plutocracy and will continue to do so. So its just a case of which bastard does the least damage. I will be getting the popcorn out when the 1922 committee becomes active again.

"Dismay after UK fails to join EU-led scheme to revive tourism."

I (still) think a lot of people on these boards that are rubbing their hands looking forward to an overseas break later this year might be in for a disappointment. Why would countries that have worked very hard to keep their populations alive suddenly risk it all to let leery Brits in ?

And why would someone who values their life - or their families - want to come to the C-19 hotspot of Europe if not the world ?

And whose fault would that be ?

I see that New Zealand now has two more cases - of Britons who came to the country. Although there is a testing failure on NZ's behalf too.

It doesn't set a good precedent.