In the news

Yes, I distinctly remember reading a Vote Labour leader, which infuriated me because they left it until the day of the vote. If they'd run it a few days earlier I felt it would have had a big ripple effect.

I agree that it's not leftie, but it's well to the left of the current govt. That's what I was trying to say.

edit: in 2005 they said Vote Blair. https://www.ft.com/content/417fa1a2-ab60-11d9-893c-00000e2511c8 In 2019 they said "In past elections, the FT has variously supported the Conservatives or a moderate Labour party." But they didn't endorse anyone. https://www.ft.com/content/d4868a48-169d-11ea-9ee4-11f260415385 I haven't done enough googling to find other elections when they backed Labour.

The Guardian has a piece about cycling history today. The usual thing about the first surfaced roads being built because cyclists asked for them. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/bike-blog/2011/aug/15/cyclists-paved-way-for-roads

Excellent synopsis.

Today? From 2011...

Thanks, very kind of you to say

So Elon Muskrat will own Twitter?

At 45 Billion or so. Do you remember that awful Bond movie with the media mogul as the baddie, sending a ship off course to provoke a war between Britain and China by manipulating GPS so he could get the scoop?

Just sayin’

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/apr/26/indonesias-palm-oil-export-ban-sparks-concern-over-global-food-prices?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

“Indonesia’s decision affects not only palm oil availability, but vegetable oils worldwide,” James Fry chairman of commodities consultancy LMC International

I’m sure with a surname like that he knows a thing or two about vegetable oils.
This

I'm looking forward to the FSW Beta which we will be able to buy. Tweets will write themselves and only very rarely tell your spouse that you are having an affair with your boss.

“Of course, we have respect for the Solomon Islands sovereignty, but we also wanted to let them know that if steps were taken to establish a de facto permanent military presence, power projection capabilities, or a military installation, then we would have significant concerns, and we would very naturally respond to those concerns,” he said.

We respect your sovereignty unless you do something we don't agree with

I guess they are talking about a foreign power establishing a military base there; not their own.

Still, the irony of the US saying that considering how many military bases they have in island nations.

a foreign power establishing a military base there

China?

Natch

Apologies, helps if I include the article
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/apr/26/us-wont-rule-out-military-action-if-china-establishes-base-in-solomon-islands

Yeh it's China, Australia are fairly livid as they were blindsided by it despite being warned by a whistleblower who they dismissed until they deal was announced

It also serves to make Johnson look competent, when compared to Patel. I think that's a big reason why he keeps her in the job. She's one of the few senior ministers who isn't seriously considered as his potential successor

This is a very common approach - promote into senior positions those who a) would never get that/a similar role without you (Dorries being the most egregious example of this) and b) who cannot challenge you. Recipe for sycophantically loyal minions - without you they're nothing, so they have to keep you in power.

Canzani has now fucked Sunak's chances of the big job, so he's very much in the same boat as the rest of the mediocrities that make up the Cabinet - not one of them is viable successor, which is why we end up (I suspect) with Hunt as the next PM.

There's always Gove hanging around in the background like a bad smell too

Hunt as the next PM

I think this would need the Tory party to be less rabidly brexity than it is, though. I don’t think the membership will go for someone who was a remainer in 2016. I could be wrong, but the party has made brexit its defining policy and (particularly as it isn’t going well) I think they won’t trust someone who wasn’t a true believer.

I think this would need the Tory party to be less rabidly brexity than it is

I agree - any leadership candidate right now will be subject to a barrage of "but you're a Remainer" / "not a true believer" bollocks.

Well
https://twitter.com/trussliz/status/701028930183110656?lang=en-GB

Always had Tim Westwood down as a wrong 'un.

I see that the BBC has moved on from calling him "vicar's son, Tim Westwood" to "white DJ, Tim Westwood".

Top journalism there, Auntie.

(I guess that it's possibly relevant, now that I've read the rest of the article though.)

Bishop's son, surely? His dad was the Bishop of Peterborough. An old boss of mine was his cousin, which came as a bit of a shock - he was the most straight, upright person I ever worked with.

WAC etc.

Hard to believe he gets his free bus pass this year though.

I agree - any leadership candidate right now will be subject to a barrage of "but you're a Remainer" / "not a true believer" bollocks.

Hunt came second to Boris last time round 66/34, so he did have some reasonable support from the party members and Brexit was a much bigger issue than it will be this time round.

Stupid fucking cunt.

To pass off your general ignorance and stupidity as a disability is plain lazy and I really think you should fuck off and die

As horrible as she is, I can't believe you didn't get piled on for this comment. Substituting and combining spoken words is definitely a thing.

I worked with someone who was dyslexic and also slightly autistic. I can imagine how thinking of "streaming a movie" or "downloading a movie" could come out as "downstream". More often than not, we could work out the mix up, but occasionally confused looks would have him asking " what did I just say?"

It's not like we'd post it on twitter and call him stupid!

I think this would need the Tory party to be less rabidly brexity than it is, though. I don’t think the membership will go for someone who was a remainer in 2016. I could be wrong, but the party has made brexit its defining policy and (particularly as it isn’t going well) I think they won’t trust someone who wasn’t a true believer.

There's potentially a balance there between the MP's who need the new PM to be electable, and the gerontocracy who as you say want a true believer. Honestly I don't know how it's going to shake out, but Hunt is a titan compared to the current cabinet. And a footnote compared to a proper politician, but we are where we are.