Brexit mega thread part 13: All eyes on Ireland

[SerendipityJane]

With the Windsor framework up & running, and the DUP having a "you could set your calendar by it" hissy fit, but Irish unification refusing to keep it's head down, what next in the long running sage of UK vs. the real world ?

Maybe someone can knit Globe an ear bandage

Trump's bandage gets bigger each time he appears.

If equally suitable and cheaper alternatives are available, what difference does it make if more expensive options are less available?

And if they are not? Well that's just tough luck, isn't it?

It's like many things - e.g. why bother to buy good quality food when cheap processed muck is available?

🤕

More like a sock, really. Some light elastic at the aperture should help it stay in place. Would need to be asymmetric I think.

Seems a criminal waste of advertising space. Surely there is scope for a single letter on each so the Republican fanbois can walk out and do a synchronised left turn to show a message ?

"Hey ! Buddy ! We Republicans don't turn left for no one !"

Maybe you could wear it on your left ear then, and do a right turn ?

"Hey, Buddy. We Republicans don't even have a left side !"

Quite. How silly I am. The best place is obviously in your mouth so you can speak power to truth. Meanwhile, I'll wear one on each ear to keep my earbuds snuggly. I'm sure I can still understand you just as well.

I miss P.J.

By Globe's logic, Temu should just be in charge of all trade. Cheap, plentiful, made with genuine exploitation.

...and using slave Uyghur labour too. Helping the Chinese commit genocide for a profit.

How wonderful.

I saw Trump on the news last night and he was wearing a plaster on his ear but it just looked like something you would put on if you needed a plaster in a hurry but only had large ones available. Surely with the money and resources available to him he could get something virtually invisible.

I visited Chicago several years ago and needed a plaster for where my shoes were rubbing. There was too much choice including antibiotic plasters and I struggled to find a bog standard one.

Yes, but Trump is Making a Statement - hence the big plaster. It was how many days ago now? It has probably scabbed over, but he has to remind everyone how God Saved Him.

It reminds me of a toddler who needs cheering up by having a Hello Kitty or superhero plaster.

He's still trying to pretend he was hit by a bullet, rather than a piece of broken glass.

I hope Starmer is making good use of the transatlantic squirrel provision to have good chats with the EU
(NYC squirrel for your amusement)

My first time in Battery park I could almost have walked on squirrels ... I don't recall seeing any black ones though - what a beauty !

They are very common in particular parts of the city, not elsewhere that I know of.

<envy>

@Peregrina It's like many things - e.g. why bother to buy good quality food when cheap processed muck is available?

If you can't afford the higher quality, then lower quality is the only remaining option.

@prettybird & @pointythings

Plenty of cheap Chinese goods available on amazon that are sold all over the World. A summary is:

At a Glance: How Many Countries Does Amazon Operate In?
Before getting into the details, here‘s a quick overview of Amazon‘s global reach:

• Operates country-specific sites in 13 countries – US, Canada, Mexico, UK, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, China, India, Japan, Australia
• Ships products to over 100 countries worldwide
• Has 185 fulfillment centers globally across North America, Europe, Asia, Middle East

If Amazon supplied goods are not up to the standards of the above Countries, how are they allowed to enter?

In the case of Poland, you forgot membership of the EU and access to a massive market, plus trade agreements across the globe, as factors in the economic growth.

Ireland survived from the time of the Famine on money sent home by emigrants, but it was after the country joined the EEC in 1973 that the economy took off.

Also seen in Princeton, New Jersey.
I was told by relatives that live there that the black ones are a mutation of the grey squirrel.
Don't know if that's correct or not.

@Spandauer
Yup they are just very dark normal squirrels. There are greys around there as well. Mixed colour litters happen.

Reminds me I have still to try squirrel meat ...

I really like the reds. Have spotted them on the IoW and Anglesey. I'd eat grey squirrel, no problem.

Squirrel was good enough for Elvis after all
https://grandmasvintagerecipes.blogspot.com/2014/10/southern-fried-squirrel.html

I see your deep fried squirrel 🐿️ and raise you hoisin crispy owl 🦉😂

I can't imagine owl tasting good, they're carnivores.

I prefer just to watch the red squirreels around my house as well as the Heron, various biirds of prey, and the occasional deer (biche) and lizards in the summer. I don't feel inclined to try 'frogs legs' and I am happy to leave escargot alone too. With garlic butter they are available in the supermarket and the lime green colour of the butter/garlic makes them very attractive but I would have mint ice cream instead. I use humane traps to catch the mice as they seem to insist on hanging out with me and asking them politely to live in my barn and NOT my house is like talking to Brexiteers (globe).

@mathanxiety but it was after the country joined the EEC in 1973 that the economy took off.

Due to large free handouts provided by others which Ireland has not yet fully repaid.

Link is:

Explainer: What counts as EU funding and where does it go? (thejournal.ie)

Highlights are:

Between 1973 and 2018, Ireland was a net recipient of over €40 billion in EU funds.

Ireland’s net contribution to the EU from 2018-2020 was €377 million.

At that rate of repayment it will take 212 years for Ireland to break even with the EU and that's ignoring inflation. Factor in an inflation rate of 4%, the debt would never be paid off.