International law might not always be properly enforced but it’s still real. When it’s not enforced properly I guess there are two obvious ways in which we can respond. We can either say “oh well international law is obviously useless, let’s not bother with it” or we can say “international law should be upheld consistently across all countries - let’s support politicians who will implement this”.

I don’t think China is automatically bad but I do think countries around the world should be careful with China. It seems to me that the PRC government is determined to expand Chinese power aggressively, even if this means breaking international rules. E.g. a UN tribunal ruled that China’s claims in the South China Sea aren’t valid, but China does not respect this ruling, and China continues to seize islands in this region. Then of course you have the PRC cracking down on free political expression, and seemingly mistreating ethnic minorities.

I think Jess Phillips seems like a decent person, I’ve watched her speak about the issue of violence against women and girls before. Here’s what the grooming survivors who support her have said:

“Jess Phillips has remained impartial to the process, only listening to feedback [and] we want her to remain in position for the duration of the process for consistency,” they wrote.

“Her previous experience and drive to reduce VAWG [violence against women and girls] and her clear passion and commitment is important to us.”

They praised Phillips, who they said had “devoted her life to hearing and amplifying the voices of women and girls who would otherwise have been unheard” and had helped some of them access support.

Probably beyond my hoodwinking skills. Also I’m not northern myself, I was just wondering what kind of person they would consider to have a “socially appropriate background”. Posh accent, wealthy family, and from South East England, I would expect.

I was a manager at Woolworths back in the day, I swear… but this family would probably say my accent isn’t posh enough to tutor their child.

The article says the fine has now been cancelled, but originally someone from the council defended the fine by saying:

We are committed to protecting Richmond’s waterways and keeping our borough’s streets clean and safe.

Pretty ridiculous. Coffee is an organic substance right? Made from roasted coffee beans. I could maybe understand if someone was pouring industrial chemicals into the sewers but coffee surely shouldn’t be a problem.

Also of course big water companies get away with dumping sewage into rivers, but a very small amount of coffee apparently needs to be harshly punished. One rule for big business and another rule for common people.

Interesting. I do think it’s a threat if hostile entities own critical pieces of British infrastructure. But I think Russia is also a threat that should be remembered, and jihadis can be a threat too, and also violent criminals who might be motivated by Christianity, white supremacy, etc.

The biggest threat to national security isn’t jihadis or the Russians, it’s privatisation and global free market capitalism.

Why not “all of the above”?

the British are brainless

I don’t think it makes sense to make judgements about the intelligence of everyone in a country based on an action done by some people in that country.

Maybe the UK needs politicians like they’re starting to get in the USA. If you don’t know this guy pictured, he’s running to be mayor of New York. His campaign is all about making necessities more affordable (rent, food, transport), and his poll numbers are pretty good.

The thing about the Convention is that it constrains governments, and it constrains the way that governments can treat minorities and people it doesn’t like… If we were out of the ECHR, you wouldn’t have that constraint

Tories are salivating at the thought

To be fair we have seen quite a bit of infighting among right-wingers in the last few years though… first the Tories tore themselves apart over Brexit, then they replaced Cameron with Theresa May, more infighting ensued, then we had Boris, Liz Truss, Rishi Sunak, and now Kemi Badenoch, and some Tories are saying Kemi won’t last long - Jenrick clearly wants to replace her. Then there’s Reform, and two of their MPs have now left the party - Rupert Lowe has started his own thing called Restore Britain.

Anyway, I don’t know what to expect from Your Party but I would be interested to see what policies they propose.

I remember the crisis in Sudan a number of years ago, the Brits were still stuck there while the Irish had already been evacuated by the Germans on account of the EU. I believe every EU diplomatic mission is actually supposed to support EU citizens regardless of nationality, although possibly in cases where their home country’s mission is inaccessible.

That’s cool. I guess Brits will have to go without such benefits for the time being. And if Reform are the next government then the UK’s ties to Europe will probably be reduced. I suppose there is time for the public to change their voting intentions before the next election though.

Another advantage of the Irish passport over the British passport is that the Irish passport allows you to live and work in 26 other European countries. But hey ho.

Yes that’s a fair point about trying to rejoin with a slim majority in favour. The majority could flip after some time, potentially.

Realistically I don’t think the UK is going to rejoin the EU for the next few years, but I think it could well become a more popular political idea over time, as the effects of Brexit become more apparent. People might start to feel it in their pockets more. So maybe the UK will end up rejoining in the next 20, 30, 40 years. Who knows though.