POLITICS CORNER

[plaques]

The term is gaslighting.
Psychologists use the term “gaslighting” to refer to a specific type of manipulation where the manipulator is trying to get someone else (or a group of people) to question their own reality, memory or perceptions.

I see Trump has now turned on Mitch McConnell leader of the Republican minority party. I'll bet McConnell wishes he hadn't voted to support Trump on the impeachment trial. It looks like Trump is making a move to control the Republicans from the outside and take control of the party. Does the Republicans have any 'grown ups' left.

[Tizer]

Here's the BBC report about McConnell and Trump. We could end up seeing both the Democrats and the Republicans fighting off the Trumpers!
`Trump attacks "dour" leader Mitch McConnell' LINK

[Stanley]

Trump is not giving up on power. He couldn't handle the Presidency so now he's after control of the Party.
I sympathised with Biden when he said he was fed up of having to talk about Trump. He knows that there is an agenda to concentrate on and it doesn't include Trump.

[plaques]

Stanley mentions that he is getting fed up with Brexit. Perhaps this is all part of Boris Johnson's master plan. So far Brexit is proving to be an absolute shambles when even those like farmers and fishermen who thought it would give them a bit of monopoly advantage are hitting buffers they never expected or even knew were there. Food prices are going up and various tariff and VAT charges from importing/exporting from the EU is adding costs and losing jobs. But we have sovereignty to do trade deals is the mantra This involves lower food standards, longer working hours, and lower safety standards. Michael Gove has been moved to one side so that he is out of the firing line when the brown stuff hits the fan. Can anyone think of a real advantage of Brexit.

[Whyperion]

P , print that out and hang it up somewhere, summarises five odd years still without a conclusion in one go.

[Whyperion]

Trump has queiried Biden on the availability of vaccines to white house staff etc and the country as a whole. Biden indeed probably not quite noticing what did occur under Trump - right and maybe grudgingly and perhaps too slow, Trump's administration did get the vaccination programme going. Perhaps the expectation was it was something that the USA should have done bigger , quicker , better and more effectively.

[Stanley]

Lovely post Ken and you are dead right. The only advantage is for the hedge funds and asset strippers who can pounce on an ailing company as it loses trade under the new rules and extract the profit. Then there are the lawyers and customs agents. As for the effects on Joe Public, it's a slow burn and it will be a while before the major effects hit us. Covid is a blessing for the Brexiteers because many of the consequences like unemployment can be blamed on the virus as can generally depressed levels of trade.
It hadn't struck me about Gove being moved out of the firing line, you could be right about that!

[Tizer]

The Observer has a front page article this morning about how the number of British households plunged into destitution more than doubled last year due to the pandemic. There were 220,000 more falling into destitution in that year. All that at the same time as figures show that on average British households saved £4000 during last year due to the pandemic depressing expenditure. The gulf between rich and poor has just been pushed much wider.

[Stanley]

I think you are right Peter and all the evidence points that way. Statements that we hear from 'experts' about the amount of money that has been saved and is ready to be spent as soon as the shops open don't add the rider that thousands of families have gone further into debt.
At the moment the situation is artificial in that many of the measures brought in to prevent a collapse are still in operation but if nothing is done they all start to switch off. Will that open the flood gates? What are we going to see in the coming months.

[Stanley]

"Boris Johnson's master plan"
At the moment Ken his plan seems to be to keep as low a profile as possible. Take full advantage of the feel good factor of a successful vaccination strategy And put himself and Gove at arms length from Brexit by erecting the Frost Lightning Conductor.
Today he will be cautious and statesmanlike with a slow release from restrictions and demonstrate his control over Rishi Sunak who is going to have to give further help to avoid a domestic social and financial catastrophe later on this summer.
The question is will this work to save the Tory bacon. On the whole no. We are a nation held together by sticking plaster and a quiescent opposition that has got used to deferring to the government in the interests of solidarity during the worst of the pandemic. This cannot last, it is not a permanent fix. There could be a paradox, the success of the vaccination programme, far from protecting the government, will allow the forces opposing the Tory government to go into attack mode. In normal times I would expect the main protagonist to be Labour but there are no signs of this, the attack is just as likely to originate in the backbench Tories.
An interesting summer awaits and I doubt if it will be good.

[Stanley]

Later, we are told that in addition to making his announcement in the Commons, PM Johnson will be making a public announcement in a TV press briefing this afternoon.
They have got us used to this by now but I have a question. Why do we need the Presidential type 'press conference'. (I suspect I might just have answered my own question....)

[PanBiker]

I would expect the main protagonist to be Labour but there are no signs of this,

Hit the nail on the head there Stanley our current "leader" is about as much use as a chocolate teapot. Certainly no radical opposition which is what is required. I despair.

[Tizer]

`Call for inquiry into Carrie Symonds' influence in No 10' LINK
A conservative think tank has called for an independent inquiry into Boris Johnson's fiancée, Carrie Symonds, and her "possible influence" in government. The Bow Group said No 10 needed to clarify her position after reports in the media that she was "taking a central role in running the country".
Conservatives have got the wind up because Carrie is influencing the direction of the UK government. Perhaps they should sit back and watch - she'll probably do a better job of it than her husband!
----------------------------------------------------------

Katharine Hamnett was on Today this morning and she's angry, very angry. Sales of British made fashion goods are in the doldrums due to Brexit charges. Also, there's a shortage of garment workers here because the usual workers are no longer coming from abroad. The interviewer suggested she prompted the British Fashion Council to do something - she said `they're useless'. Then he said why don't the industry go and raise the problem with individual countries on the Continent - she said no, because the government are supposed to represent us, it's their job. She seems to understand representative democracy better than our politicians do!

[Stanley]

I agree Ian, Private Eye presents him as a Max Headroom figure and they could be right.
They do right to look carefully at the role of Ms Symonds....
I heard that interview Peter and you're right, she was very angry! She didn't mince her words at all. Quite refreshing!
The interview with her was the latest in what feels like a series illustrating the areas where Brexit is destroying previously profitable trade. Fishing of course is one of the worst examples, it may not be the biggest in terms of turnover but in terms of principle it is absolutely damning.

[Stanley]

I'm listening to Johnson saying that a certificate of vaccination would be something new. Somebody should tell him about the identity cards we had during the war. I've never been able to understand why feelings are so strong against such a card.

[PanBiker]

I'm listening to Johnson saying that a certificate of vaccination would be something new. Somebody should tell him about the identity cards we had during the war. I've never been able to understand why feelings are so strong against such a card.

A modern electronic equivalent could be very useful both for security and medical purposes. In fact it could be purposed for all sorts of uses beyond basic information. A photo card like the driving licence and a smart chip for data. In fact you could integrate your driving credentials as well. The anti-ID brigade don't realise that everyone is already photographed dozens if not hundreds of times a day, tracked to within inches every time they use a credit or debit card. It makes no sense to me either.

[Tripps]

A modern electronic equivalent could be very useful both for security and medical purposes

You could use it when you vote too.

Looks like the Swedes are far ahead of us here. Embedded chip

What could possibly go wrong?

[Stanley]

This school photo taken in 1940 was to aid identification of my body if I was killed. The string round my neck was for my identity tag, issued for the same reason.
Nothing new under the sun Mr Johnson.
Later, I've just heard David Cameron referred to as 'a heavyweight politician'. Some mistake surely?
A bit later still. Kier Starmer speaking to the Farming Conference reveals that he once had a holiday job on a local farm so he understands agriculture. I wonder if these politicians realise that this sort of credential does nothing but trigger gales of scepticism and laughter.

[PanBiker]

The anti-ID brigade don't realise that everyone is already photographed dozens if not hundreds of times a day, tracked to within inches every time they use a credit or debit card. It makes no sense to me either.

I forgot to add, a rather large percentage of the population have no problem carrying a mobile tracking device around with them as well. For some it's like an extra limb and they don't even get anonymity through the night as they never switch them off even when they are unconscious! Every single one of the billions in use has a unique hardware MAC address. So, not only are you tracked, it would be perfectly possible to trace who the phone is registered to. Folk surrendered any chance of under the radar activity as soon as CCTV, POS terminals, ATM machines and mobile phones became the norm. Lets have a National Smart ID Card, you know it makes sense.

[Tizer]

Can you imagine the response from the anti-5G lobby, the anti-vaxers, QAnon, Piers Corbyn, libertarians etc etc!

[PanBiker]

Personally, I am not bothered about any of their views. It's still a very good idea. You could say that the folk who don't agree must have something to hide which is a laugh as it's probably already known.

[Stanley]

Salmond v. Sturgeon. Is this getting as serious as it looks to be? See THIS BBC report on the affair.

[chinatyke]

Who is running the World?
Biden,Putin and Xi were arguing on who is in charge of the world? USA, Russia, or China ?
Without any conclusion, they turned to Narendra Modi, the Indian Prime Minister, and asked him "Who is in charge of the world?"

Modi replied "Well! All I know is:
1. Google/Alphabet CEO is an Indian.
2. Microsoft CEO is an Indian.
3. Adobe CEO is an Indian.
4. Net App CEO is an Indian.
5. MasterCard CEO is an Indian .
6. DBS CEO is an Indian.
7 Novartis CEO is an Indian.
8. Diageo CEO is an Indian.
9. SanDisk CEO is an Indian.
10. Harman CEO is an Indian.
11. Micron CEO is an Indian.
12. Palo Alto Networks CEO is an Indian.
13. Reckitt Benckiser CEO is an Indian.
14. IBM CEO is an Indian.
15. Britain’s Chancellor is an Indian.
16. Britain’s Home Secretary is an Indian.
17. Ireland’s Prime minister is an Indian.
18. Nokia's CEO is an Indian.
19. And the American Vice President is Indian.
Who did you think was running the World?"

[plaques]

Who did you think was running the World?"

But they say God couldn't have been an Indian because he wouldn't have rested on the seventh day.

[Tizer]

China's list looks impressive until you take into account there are over a million large companies worldwide. It's an example of selecting only data that suit your proposition. Fancy a job as a politician, China?