General News Thread

[leicsmac]

16 minutes ago, Tommy G said:

Well we can't buy iphones from Angola can we.

 

Jokes aside I'm with the complete boycott of the US, practically though it's verty tricky in reality

Oh, yes, it would be extremely tricky in practice. 

 

The question just remains whether there's a better option out there than having to commit to this economic escalation. I can't think of one, perhaps some smart person can. 

[ramboacdc]

Trump had all the UK unified to say he was being a tw@ with his tariff threat, he (read: His aides) found the point of contention to split the room again and went for it. Baedenoch is a passenger in her own party and will just agree and Farage is...well...

I liked the part the other day where Farage said he was going to "have a word" with Trump about the tariffs like he was just going to pop him a message in the Whatsapp group. Man is deluded. 

[Leicesterpool]

News headline caught my eye a woman is wanted for sexual assault on a man!? Yep not an headline you expect to read.

 

https://www.dailystar.co.uk/news/uk-news/man-sexually-assaulted-sheffield-worksop-36581495

 

 

[leicsmac]

12 minutes ago, ramboacdc said:

Trump had all the UK unified to say he was being a tw@ with his tariff threat, he (read: His aides) found the point of contention to split the room again and went for it. Baedenoch is a passenger in her own party and will just agree and Farage is...well...

I liked the part the other day where Farage said he was going to "have a word" with Trump about the tariffs like he was just going to pop him a message in the Whatsapp group. Man is deluded. 

An issue that Trump himself agreed with and signed off on not long ago. 

 

I can't quite believe that both Badenoch and Farage are so daft as to think Trump's viewpoint is in any way trustworthy, other than the conclusion that their "distrust" of him on other matters is in fact a smokescreen and they are both in fact totally fine with all of the foreign policy decisions he's currently making, they just know they can't say it out loud.

[danny.]

4 hours ago, Bellend Sebastian said:

There's a lot going on in this and I am absolutely not saying he's right, but it's interesting all the same. Apologies if already posted:

 

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-interactive/2026/jan/18/tech-ai-bubble-burst-reverse-centaur

He's really not right, this section in particular 

"But AI can’t do your job. It can help you do your job, but that does not mean it is going to save anyone money."

True for many jobs, absolute nonsense for others. AI will decimate the software industry, it already is. Copyrighting went ages ago, translation also. Photography, videography, editing, motion design decimated. Many office jobs won't be too hard to completely replace either.

[WigstonWanderer]

2 hours ago, Tommy G said:

Don't disagree but cutting trade will have a significant impact on the UK and the rest of Europe whether we like it or not - the Trident programme for starters are serviced in the US so bang goes our Nuclear deterrent!  

A nuclear deterrent dependent on the US in this way is pretty much useless anyway in the new circumstances. Not sure what the answer is, but if Europe wants to have any say at all in future world affairs I think it’s going to have to develop its own capability and the UK should throw in with that. I appreciate that this is very difficult and probably unlikely, and I speak as someone who has been anti-proliferation until now.

 

It seems like every dictator, his wife and his dog has nukes these days.

Edited 20 January by WigstonWanderer

[Trav Le Bleu]

1 hour ago, leicsmac said:

Oh, yes, it would be extremely tricky in practice. 

 

The question just remains whether there's a better option out there than having to commit to this economic escalation. I can't think of one, perhaps some smart person can. 

Big chance for Virgin Cola to make a comeback.

[Trav Le Bleu]

2 minutes ago, WigstonWanderer said:

A nuclear deterrent dependent on the US in this way is pretty much uselanyw

Not to the Welsh it isn't.

[st albans fox]

Trump definitely wants the minerals and rare earths - they’re on his doorstep and as climate change continues to raise temps, they may become easier to extract. 
 

greenland and danish govt are very eco centric. They’ll never allow it.  Maybe that’s where the middle ground exists (if it does) 

[leicsmac]

3 minutes ago, st albans fox said:

Trump definitely wants the minerals and rare earths - they’re on his doorstep and as climate change continues to raise temps, they may become easier to extract. 
 

greenland and danish govt are very eco centric. They’ll never allow it.  Maybe that’s where the middle ground exists (if it does) 

The degree of change that will make those resources easily exploitable will also cause enough world upheaval to (probably) render their availability utterly moot.

 

Trump and his lackeys either don't understand that or simply don't care and are happy with seeing the world burn anyway. 

Edited 20 January by leicsmac

[Sampson]

Is Macron wearing sunglasses inside at important diplomatic conferences a genuine eye affliction thing or an attempt at MAGA-hat populism?

 

It’s weird to see the clips/photos of it. 

[bovril]

Just now, Sampson said:

Is Macron wearing sunglasses inside at important diplomatic conferences a genuine eye affliction thing or an attempt at MAGA-hat populism?

 

It’s weird to see the clips/photos of it. 

He's French 

[Sampson]

1 minute ago, bovril said:

He's French 

I thought it felt like more like an Italian thing

[bovril]

2 minutes ago, Sampson said:

I thought it felt like more like an Italian thing

Any excuse to post the macron political compass

 

[WigstonWanderer]

14 minutes ago, st albans fox said:

Trump definitely wants the minerals and rare earths - they’re on his doorstep and as climate change continues to raise temps, they may become easier to extract. 
 

greenland and danish govt are very eco centric. They’ll never allow it.  Maybe that’s where the middle ground exists (if it does) 

Rare earths aren’t that rare. It’s the refining that’s hard & polluting. There’s plenty in Australia. China has a monopoly because it refines them cheaply, partly by turning a blind eye to the pollution. As a result it’s been uneconomic for anyone else to enter the market to refine.

[Leicesterpool]

Beckham son story is the non headline of the year. Cant believe its making main headlines on newspapers and tv. 

[bovril]

2 minutes ago, Leicesterpool said:

Beckham son story is the non headline of the year. Cant believe its making main headlines on newspapers and tv. 

I do love the chutzpah of celebs making it all about them at times of great geopolitical tension and danger. Prince Harry could only dream of such audacity...

[leicsmac]

50 minutes ago, WigstonWanderer said:

A nuclear deterrent dependent on the US in this way is pretty much useless anyway in the new circumstances. Not sure what the answer is, but if Europe wants to have any say at all in future world affairs I think it’s going to have to develop its own capability and the UK should throw in with that. I appreciate that this is very difficult and probably unlikely, and I speak as someone who has been anti-proliferation until now.

 

It seems like every dictator, his wife and his dog has nukes these days.

The French have their own capability, and the UK are practically there in terms of independent capability besides the warheads themselves. I don't think that it would be too difficult to develop that further. 

 

And to think a few years ago I argued for non proliferation and said that game theory on this one made it clear that just two parties having such weapons would likely be enough. How wrong I was.

[danny.]

14 minutes ago, bovril said:

Any excuse to post the macron political compass

 

Always enjoy the "There is no <insert white majority country here> culture" claim.

[bovril]

1 minute ago, danny. said:

Always enjoy the "There is no <insert white majority country here> culture" claim.

Context

 

https://newsroom.co.nz/2017/05/04/macron-french-culture/

[fox_up_north]

44 minutes ago, Leicesterpool said:

Beckham son story is the non headline of the year. Cant believe its making main headlines on newspapers and tv. 

Yeah. Like...mate we're potentially about to see the US invade an EU country. Nobody cares about whether you get on with your mum.

 

Yet the journalists still bang on about it. 

[Leicesterpool]

41 minutes ago, bovril said:

I do love the chutzpah of celebs making it all about them at times of great geopolitical tension and danger. Prince Harry could only dream of such audacity...

Families have disputes every day. Some lasts for years but is it worth going to press about. This should only feature in the gossip magazines.

[Tommy G]

1 hour ago, WigstonWanderer said:

A nuclear deterrent dependent on the US in this way is pretty much useless anyway in the new circumstances. Not sure what the answer is, but if Europe wants to have any say at all in future world affairs I think it’s going to have to develop its own capability and the UK should throw in with that. I appreciate that this is very difficult and probably unlikely, and I speak as someone who has been anti-proliferation until now.

 

It seems like every dictator, his wife and his dog has nukes these days.

I think it’s over £10bn a year 

[Leicesterpool]

Can congress in America prevent milliary action in Greenland. Surely even in America bad relations with Europe is not good for the US.

Edited 20 January by Leicesterpool

[st albans fox]

11 minutes ago, fox_up_north said:

Yeah. Like...mate we're potentially about to see the US invade an EU country. Nobody cares about whether you get on with your mum.

 

Yet the journalists still bang on about it. 

The majority of the population are more interested in beckham than Greenland ……

follow the money