General News Thread

[leicsmac]

In other news, 80 years today since Victory in Japan was declared, and official hostilities in World War II came to an end.

 

Never Again.

[Jon the Hat]

7 minutes ago, leicsmac said:

In other news, 80 years today since Victory in Japan was declared, and official hostilities in World War II came to an end.

 

Never Again*

I just hope not in my lifetime. I became a man in the 1990's I have no idea how to deal with major war.  None.

[leicsmac]

12 minutes ago, Trav Le Bleu said:

Sticks and stones, etc

 

What baffles me is that we live in a world full of CCTV, mobile phones, invisible laser beams... and yet it's easier to nick stuff and get away with it.

 

Then you have the enormous amount of money that speed cameras raise, money that 30 years ago needed to be obtained by PCs actually going out and catching people speeding and yet we don't have the funds to have enough police. How does that work? 

 

When speed cameras were introduced, it was to free up officers so they could be dealing with more serious crime. Well that's not happened, so where's the money gone?

 

Seems like the police concentrate on "easy" crime so that the data figures look good (a plague for almost all big businesses these days).

I've never really understood this idea. 

 

Words are important. Words have power both for and over people. Words often lead to deeds.

 

That's why the dictatorships of the past and present always reduce access to them. 

 

Fully appreciate the salient point about police resources though, and you do wonder where the resources are going given this era where it really should be much easier to deal with petty theft and the like. 

[leicsmac]

3 minutes ago, Jon the Hat said:

I just hope not in my lifetime. I became a man in the 1990's I have no idea how to deal with major war.  None.

You're not alone there. I don't think anyone would. 

 

A major war now would play out like the movie Threads. Only worse. 

[Trav Le Bleu]

7 minutes ago, leicsmac said:

You're not alone there. I don't think anyone would. 

 

A major war now would play out like the movie Threads. Only worse. 

You mean .... not Sheffield?

[Torquay Gunner]

This is what an authoritarian government looks like, face covered ICE agents sweeping an empty MacArthur Park in LA yesterday.  Looks like some dystopian nightmare.
Bloody hell America.

 

 

Edited 15 August 2025 by Torquay Gunner

[Sol thewall Bamba]

8 minutes ago, Torquay Gunner said:

This is what an authoritarian government looks like, face covered ICE agents sweeping an empty MacArthur Park in LA yesterday.  Looks like some dystopian nightmare.
Bloody hell America.

 

 

"The land of the free".

[JonnyBoy]

20 hours ago, kenny said:

Its good news. It still feels rough out there though, recruitment hasn't been this easy since 2007 and people are struggling for work. 

 

Hearing of quite a few being made redundant as well. Lots on linkedin are struggling for new roles.

 

Hopefully the employment issues are just a blip.

Agree, job vac's down for about 12 quarters in a row now, we aren't looking to hire due to tough economic climate and NI hikes, loads of people i know struggling to find new roles. 

 

But yea, Rachel from accounts is doing a marvellous job 

[CosbehFox]

22 hours ago, urban.spaceman said:

Rachel from accounts is destroying are economy. 
 

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2025/aug/14/uk-economy-avoids-flatlining-slowdown-tax-rises-trump-trade-war

The BBC's initial headline was 'UK economic growth slowed between April and June to 0.3%, official figures show' 

 

Strongest performance in the G7. 

 

 

 

 

[leicsmac]

1 hour ago, CosbehFox said:

The BBC's initial headline was 'UK economic growth slowed between April and June to 0.3%, official figures show' 

 

Strongest performance in the G7. 

 

 

 

 

Don't let facts get in the way of anecdotes. 

[urban.spaceman]

On 13/08/2025 at 19:22, leicsmac said:

The divisions you talk of here do have to stop, or at least be mitigated. That is a matter of necessity. 

 

On 13/08/2025 at 20:16, bovril said:

Agree that Britain's political discourse is absolutely exhausting and it's also remarkable how many people have internalized the idea that things they don't like (mostly immigration) is the fault of Labour. Cognitive dissonance I guess.

 

On 13/08/2025 at 23:34, MaidstoneFox said:

Don't want to go into social history too much here, but the main thing that has changed is the means of communication and the incredible speed of the news cycle. Yesterday's news used to be tomorrow's chip paper, but now it's constantly updated and from multiple sources. Immigration has always and will always be a fuse for social unrest and a gateway for political opportunists. Labour is I think more seen as a political elite or autocratic non-ideological government now by lots of people, whereas in the past they had closer trade union and traditional working class roots. In that sense they are seen as interchangeable and just as complicit for immigration problems as the previous government.

The evolution of the social media sites over the last 10+ years has been utterly devastating. 

[leicsmac]

3 minutes ago, urban.spaceman said:

 

 

The evolution of the social media sites over the last 10+ years has been utterly devastating. 

I keep saying it, but Kojima called it almost 25 years ago. 

 

I fear, however, that in terms of possible devastation caused by such digital division, we have really seen nothing yet. 

 

As always though, I really hope that I'm wrong. 

[urban.spaceman]

On 14/08/2025 at 07:35, Trav Le Bleu said:

It is weird though how a lot of people who don't want immigrants are also against sending aid abroad. The whole reason we have immigration problems is lack of resources in foreign lands. You (plural, not you Jon) call Britain 'broken'? How very myopic! Cast your view around the world.

 

Of course, a lot of said aid is misused by corrupt governments (and again, people call our politicians corrupt ), but it just shows the size of the problem.

 

Short of sticking warships in the Channel... but then they'd come via Ireland or across the North Sea.

 

Maybe we should have an amount of pride that so many people see us as a good place to come? I dunno, it's a massive problem, difficult to solve, mainly because self-interest trumps cooperation.

 

P.S. The English language really needs a you plural/impersonal like just about every other language. Would solve a lot of misunderstandings.

 

On 14/08/2025 at 08:13, Jon the Hat said:

Its not that illogical tbh, they don't want to pay to look after others when they see poverty / lack of investment at home.  Mind you some of them dont want to pay for that either.

I also think ones understanding of poverty changes a bit if you venture out of the wealthy western world and into other parts.

 

What amazes me is that the people who hate immigrants and any sort of immigration, the people opposed to foreign aid, and the people opposed to doing literally anything about climate change are the same ****ing people. I get that Richard 'stupid' Tice is paid by fossil fuel companies to whinge on their behalf but it's just incredible to see 'normal' people struggle to connect the those dots. 

[bovril]

4 minutes ago, urban.spaceman said:

 

 

The evolution of the social media sites over the last 10+ years has been utterly devastating. 

Yeah it'd be great to uninvent it (apart from foxestalk of course). I do think though it is more corrosive in a country like England with its very individualistic culture and declining wealth. 

[leicsmac]

18 minutes ago, urban.spaceman said:

 

What amazes me is that the people who hate immigrants and any sort of immigration, the people opposed to foreign aid, and the people opposed to doing literally anything about climate change are the same ****ing people. I get that Richard 'stupid' Tice is paid by fossil fuel companies to whinge on their behalf but it's just incredible to see 'normal' people struggle to connect the those dots. 

Welcome to the political dilemma science communicators (and me) have been tearing our hair out about for a long time now. 

 

Being opposed to what is perceived a problem and then be also opposed to addressing the root causes of that problem both present and future is a truly amazing feat of cognitive dissonance. 

 

Not only is it frustrating, it costs money and lives, and will cost a lot more over time. 

Edited 15 August 2025 by leicsmac

[BKLFox]

Well buy me a hat and call me Cilla as a certain councillor is cleared of encouraging violent disorder.

 

[Spudulike]

3 minutes ago, BKLFox said:

Well buy me a hat and call me Cilla as a certain councillor is cleared of encouraging violent disorder.

 

This is going to play right into the hands of the 2-tier believers. Perhaps they have a point?

[urban.spaceman]

26 minutes ago, BKLFox said:

Well buy me a hat and call me Cilla as a certain councillor is cleared of encouraging violent disorder.

 

 

20 minutes ago, Spudulike said:

This is going to play right into the hands of the 2-tier believers. Perhaps they have a point?

It’s going to be fun watching the likes of Richard ‘stupid’ Tice conflate a man being found not guilty by a jury of his peers with a woman being jailed after pleading guilty to her crime. 

[Jon the Hat]

3 hours ago, Sol thewall Bamba said:

"The land of the free".

What?  The land of the free?  Whoever told you that is your enemy.

[Jon the Hat]

26 minutes ago, Spudulike said:

This is going to play right into the hands of the 2-tier believers. Perhaps they have a point?

I am still faintly happy the word tier is out there so much simply because it rhymes with Keir.  Its a great word tier.

[urban.spaceman]

1 hour ago, leicsmac said:

Welcome to the political dilemma science communicators (and me) have been tearing our hair out about for a long time now. 

 

Being opposed to what is perceived a problem and then be also opposed to addressing the root causes of that problem both present and future is a truly amazing feat of cognitive dissonance. 

 

Not only is it frustrating, it costs money and lives, and will cost a lot more over time. 

I had hoped the COVID pandemic would have been enough to convince people that having irresponsible, scientifically illiterate, self interested and over-privileged twats in charge is a really ****ing stupid idea but here we are 5 years later and there's a fascist in the White House lying about transgender mice, defunding scientific research with the help of an anti-vaccine activist as his health secretary.

 

America is a lost cause for at least a generation or two but I sincerely hope here we have the latter stages of the COVID inquest broadcast live on national television to not just get across the importance of taking science seriously but also getting the public on board with holding said irresponsible, scientifically illiterate, self interested and over-privileged twats who were in charge at the time accountable for their crimes so that we don't let it happen again. 

[Sol thewall Bamba]

19 minutes ago, Jon the Hat said:

What?  The land of the free?  Whoever told you that is your enemy.

I guess you missed the quotation marks indicating sarcasm. 

[Salisbury Fox]

3 hours ago, CosbehFox said:

The BBC's initial headline was 'UK economic growth slowed between April and June to 0.3%, official figures show' 

 

Strongest performance in the G7. 

 

 

 

 

Strongest performance over the first half of the year when combining the 1st and 2nd quarters, but not the strongest in the 2nd quarter which is why I assume the BBC headline was what it was.

[Clogger_]

16 minutes ago, Sol thewall Bamba said:

I guess you missed the quotation marks indicating sarcasm. 

Guess you missed the mighty RATM

[leicsmac]

11 minutes ago, urban.spaceman said:

I had hoped the COVID pandemic would have been enough to convince people that having irresponsible, scientifically illiterate, self interested and over-privileged twats in charge is a really ****ing stupid idea but here we are 5 years later and there's a fascist in the White House lying about transgender mice, defunding scientific research with the help of an anti-vaccine activist as his health secretary.

 

America is a lost cause for at least a generation or two but I sincerely hope here we have the latter stages of the COVID inquest broadcast live on national television to not just get across the importance of taking science seriously but also getting the public on board with holding said irresponsible, scientifically illiterate, self interested and over-privileged twats who were in charge at the time accountable for their crimes so that we don't let it happen again. 

The truly perverse thing about the Covid pandemic may be that it wasn't devastating enough. 

 

It took lives, destroyed lives, so many of them, but the fact that so many people didn't consider it to be a problem, either at the time or now, leading directly to the path that those Stateside have taken, possibly means that it didn't touch enough lives to convince enough folks of the truth that natural events (whether human driven or not), are the greatest threat to them. 

 

That will come back to haunt our species. It is doing so already. 

 

Not being able to look beyond a tribal mindset that results in both paranoia about other human groups and failure to understand threats that are global when they're not in your face is such a weakness. Such a costly one, too.