In the news

Doesn't fit with the right wings assessment that all the people coming by boat are young men of working age... who are clearly economic migrants looking for work whilst at the same time only coming for the benefits.

who are clearly economic migrants looking for work whilst at the same time only coming for the benefits.

Last person I challenged on this said that "all of them were doing both".

"Coming over here and taking our cash in hand jobs and sending that money back to wherever they come from whilst also claiming benefits."

The particular person I spoke to didn't like it when I pointed out they paid their cleaner and gardener cash-in-hand and so they were gladly enabling some of the tax evasion going on.

XR protester jailed 10 months for breaking bank windows. To put things in perspective, that's longer than someone who killed a cyclist by negligence.

In shocking news, water is wet.

https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/article/2024/jun/15/the-big-problem-is-water-uk-ebike-owners-plagued-by-failing-motors

And poor engineering is poor engineering.

https://people.com/gordon-ramsay-says-lucky-to-be-here-after-bicycling-accident-8664007

Good time to invest in bike helmet companies. His helmet was trashed, and he tore through the jersey so he has a bad scrape somewhere as well as the bruise.

Speculation as to cause?

Risk compensation. He felt safer in a helmet, took more risks, crashed.

Please- “fighting age men” is the correct term.

Speculation as to cause?

Did lean.

Speculation as to cause?

He forgot brakefast as too busy whisking past traffic

He should stick to what he's good at (bullying and cooking?); leave the risk analysis to those who know about it

Please- “fighting age men” is the correct term.

Or ‘military age males’ if you want to dehumanise boys as young as 14 and men as old as 65.

China’s President Xi Jinping told European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen that Washington was trying to goad Beijing into attacking Taiwan, according to people familiar with matter.

Xi issued the warning in a meeting with von der Leyen in April 2023 that was described to the Financial Times by several people. He said the US was trying to trick China into invading Taiwan, but that he would not take the bait. Another person said he had issued similar warnings to his officials.
https://www.ft.com/content/7d6ca06c-d098-4a48-818e-112b97a9497a

I know someone who worked as a chef for him at Claridges. He said the shouty stuff is all performative bullshit for reality tv shows. Gordon is very precise but calm with what he expects in professional service.

Madame Tussauds have never really recovered after the pandemic have they?

How can Ms Etchingham not wear a tie?

It's a bit of a pisser that Ramsay gets on the front page of the BBC and Guardian to push his helmet thing. he was in some kind of a triathlon/ironman comp where helmet wearing is compulsory. He trashed his helmet; something – the regs, and his helmet – is working.

Guardian also reports rising concern from Dutch authorities about their widespread non-helmet wearing. Further reading, you realise this is down to an increased number of traffic deaths ... linked in particular to older riders and e-bikes. There's a thing!

Why can't Ramsay just fall off his bike and go home and lick his wounds like the rest of us?

And why can't the Guardian be a bit more careful with its uncritical reporting, which appears to go with the Dutch Govt spin rather than examining it.

Full disclosure: I wear a helmet in the town and city, and very rarely on the country lanes I ride.

He didnt mention that he was in a competion as far as what i heard from him. A direct opposite to what chris boardman has always said . Cars don't have accidents drivers do.

On the Le Pen thing in France- is she associated with the Vichy regime at all in people’s minds, or is “far right” just a label without the associations that I as a foreign would draw?

I wear a helmet in the town and city, and very rarely on the country lanes I ride.

To add diversity, I find the slower
Moving commuting traffic less risky than the county lanes with vehicles bombing around blind corners and what not, I.e London vs Surrey / Kent.

^same

Helmet ain't gonna do shit if you get hit at 60mph...

Depending on the helmet, might make the difference between an open or closed casket.