POLITICS CORNER

[Stanley]

See THIS for the latest news about British Steel.
2 hours ago
Officials are working to deliver essential raw materials to British Steel's Scunthorpe plant, the government has said, as it races to keep its blast furnaces burning. An emergency law rushed through Parliament on Saturday gave the government control of the Lincolnshire site to prevent its Chinese owner shutting it down. The government said work was under way on Monday to obtain the coking coal and iron ore that power the plant's two furnaces - materials it previously said owners Jingye had been selling off. "My team are already hard at work on the ground to keep jobs going and furnaces burning," the business secretary said in a statement. Dozens of businesses including steel producers Tata and Rainham Steel have offered help and to supply their raw materials, the government added. How quickly materials get to the site is important because blast furnaces can sustain permanent damage if their temperature drops too low. Restarting a furnace that has shut down is also a costly and complex process.
I'm glad they have at last admitted the fact that the danger was the furnace temperature dropping. In effect this has always meant the immediate closure of the plant and the Chinese owners knew that. I heard a report that they are already building a replacement plant in China and had even offered jobs to some key workers here to work at the new plant.

[Stanley]

See THIS update on British Steel....
Updated 3 hours ago
British Steel's blast furnaces are set to continue running with a delivery of enough raw materials to keep them alight for the "coming weeks" due on Tuesday, the government has said. Coking coal and iron ore from the US will be unloaded at Immingham docks and transported to the Scunthorpe site after a scramble for supplies. A separate shipment of materials is back on its way to the UK from Australia after a legal dispute over who owned the cargo was resolved between the government and British Steel's owner Jingye.
It seems we can breath again! The question now is how to keep going in future. The sooner the government fully take over the plant the better.

[Tizer]

Trump is as bad as Putin at allocating blame...
`Trump blames Zelensky for starting war after massive Russian attack' LINK
Donald Trump has blamed Volodymyr Zelensky for starting the war with Russia – a day after a massive Russian attack killed 35 people and injured 117 others in Ukraine. The US president said the Ukrainian leader shared the blame with Russian President Vladimir Putin for "millions of people dead" in the Ukraine war. "You don't start a war against someone 20 times your size and then hope that people give you some missiles," he told reporters at the White House, also blaming former US President Joe Biden for the conflict....

[Stanley]

I heard that report Peter. How can we allow this jerk to make statements like that without immediately challenging him? It goes beyond sycophancy, it's wicked!
I have a question, how many deaths will Trump and his henchmen have to their credit following the cuts to overseas aid and scientific research?

[Stanley]

I see the Board of deputies of British Jews has expressed opposition to Netanyahu's government's actions in Gaza.
Does this mean that if I criticise Netanyahu I am no longer Anti-Semitic? (LINK)

[Stanley]

I freely admit I don't understand THIS.
Judges at the UK Supreme Court have unanimously ruled that a woman is defined by biological sex under equalities law. It marks the culmination of a long-running legal battle which could have major implications for how sex-based rights apply across Scotland, England and Wales. The court sided with campaign group For Women Scotland, which brought a case against the Scottish government arguing that sex-based protections should only apply to people that are born female. Judge Lord Hodge said the ruling should not be seen as a triumph of one side over the other, and stressed that the law still gives protection against discrimination to transgender people.
In addition I have been told that modern males are insecure in their understanding of gender and this explains the ultra-male behaviour we see in some sectors of society, Gymnasia, sports and the military. I must have been lucky because I never had any doubts that I was a man. Much of this was due to the fact that I spent my working day lifting heavy weights and later driving a 60 feet long motor long distances each day. I think such activities confirm your 'maleness' more than working in a call centre or on the check-out at a supermarket. We were captains of our fate, had calloused hands and no doubts.
I am told that our sperm count was higher as well. No wonder some young lads feel insecure.....

[PanBiker]

Well, I am in no doubt about the difference between males and females. I certainly appreciate that women have attributes that blokes don't have, lots of skills too. Lots of females drive articulated lorries, buses, trains, military and civil aeroplanes. I am fortunate as a bog standard heterosexual male that I had the privileged of discovering the delights of the opposite sex when I was a young man. I am not conflicted or confused in my views, certainly not insecure.

[Whyperion]

In addition I have been told that modern males are insecure in their understanding of gender and this explains the ultra-male behaviour we see in some sectors of society, Gymnasia, sports and the military. I
I think for some that has always been so.
However the Supreme Court Ruling was rather specific (and in my view not without error) . The Equalities Act specifically mentioned Women in terms of protected characteristics and allowance for positive discrimination. The court decided that Woman meant (biological) female, and that sex was binary in terms of Male and Female. So where do I see the errors - one is do we now have to actually decide what is meant by Biological Female - this takes the "ordinary/implied" meaning the court found into one of science. Indeed even if we assume generally births are 50:50 male / female that is not quite right ( women can under certain circumstances - and it is not sure how ) regulate the viability of one or the other to ensure more females around in times of an excess of males - and produce more males during war etc - indeed there is a slight general excess of males which compensates for the risks they take which could reduce the number of males living to maturity/old age. (This we could argue that having boards of governance at least 50percent female itself is skewed to over=representing women in terms of numbers of births (rather than numbers overall living at any one time) . Leaving aside trans-gender (by choice) there are a few births per 100,000 where for some reason the totality of sex is missing in some way , and thus the idea of binary falls down though at very low percentages ( affected by a whole load of hormonal/ pollution / virus / excess or lack of vitamins ,minerals during pregnancy or just fault gene / chromozone development , there does not seem to be significant variation between ethnic groups as such (anyone done blood type analysis of parents / offspring though ?) These variations do mean that the ticking of one or the other of a binary box is incorrect. Arriving at TransGender by choice where that choice may be driven by genetic and thus biological factors, the definition of biological male (ability to father offspring after taking into account any mechancial defect or trama , or female (ability to produce a fertilisable egg and bring such to a position of birth - again allowing for mechanical defects in the system (where mechanics may include Some biological impediments that would not restrict the defintion to be other than female) does become not as straight forward for humans and indeed most mammals. We know that some fish can change gender with age or enviromental factors - this is less of a problem as the gametes for many fish are of a type which have fertilisation external of the body , generally with the eggs being anchored to some object whilst males go for a general spread of spray and hope, but the numbers of eggs at any one time are much higher than with most mammals . I suspect some insects have similar ablity to make definition of what may be a female gamete and a male one difficult - maybe it is a simple as male gamets always contain one male chromosone ?
So the Political choice is , do you provide safe spaces for persons who are not male, or female ? and do you change quotas at least to read 50percent less one person for female "equality of participation" ? Whilst there is still general protection against negative discrimination against non-binary (though does the obiter of the judgement dicate these do not exist in law even if they exist in fact (gives passports etc problems?) ) and trans persons (eg you cannot refuse to serve them in a shop), there appears to be a lack of how positive discrimination unless enshrined in legislation can be carried out within the present legal framework (though it could be informal if it doesnt affect others rights ?)

[Stanley]

See THIS report of a cock-up....
Hundreds of Westminster insiders were added to - and then swiftly deleted from - a WhatsApp group set up by shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick to promote his London Marathon run. The mishap was laughed off by Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch, who revealed that she too had briefly been a member of the chat along with senior journalists, former cabinet members and other Tory MPs. The BBC has been told Jenrick is not referring himself to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), which investigates data breaches. A source said the ICO did not need to be involved because the contacts had been added to the group for "personal purposes" and the risk of malicious use was low. The ICO told BBC News that data protection law did not apply to the use of personal information for "domestic and household" purposes. But it said if "non-corporate communication channels" - such as WhatsApp groups - were being used for "professional purposes", data protection law would apply. A source said Jenrick had announced he was running in the London Marathon and "in a technical mix-up, a message designed for broadcast turned into a group chat".
Couldn't happen to a nicer bloke.... And yes, you're right, I have no time for this man who has been ladder-climbing in the Tory Party ever since he was sacked when he was a minister. I don't trust him.

[Stanley]

See THIS report which heads the political news this morning.
Sir Keir Starmer and Donald Trump discussed "ongoing and productive" trade talks, No 10 has said, in their first call since the US president imposed tariffs on UK goods. The prime minister stressed his commitment to "free and open trade and the importance of protecting the national interest", a Downing Street spokesperson said. They added that the two leaders also discussed "the situation in Ukraine, Iran and recent action taken against the Houthis in Yemen". Sir Keir is hoping to secure a deal with the US after Trump unveiled 10% tariffs on UK goods and a higher 25% rate on imports of cars, steel and aluminium. "The leaders began by discussing the ongoing and productive discussions between the UK and US on trade," No 10 said in a statement.
Who do they think they are kidding? Trump has his own agenda for trade and it is nothing to do with being nice to the UK remember MAGA! The real reason Trump is being so nice is all to do with a State visit, he's even trying to impose his own timetable.... I can see that going down well with Brian!
Once again we are looking at managed news.

[PanBiker]

Trump has supposedly signed the mineral deal with Ukraine and in the next breath warned that if there is no settlement in the war fairly soon America will walk away! Clear indication that he is only interested in what he can get out of the situation. That is part of the problem, everything is no more than a deal to the Orange Knob.

[Tizer]

The Americast team have reported how Trump's gang plan to turn the land on their side of the Mexico border into one long, very narrow military base so that anyone crossing from Mexico without going through a normal border post will be trespassing on military property and illegally in the US and will be prosecuted and deported. Thinking people have already pointed out that the border is about 2000 miles long and passes through towns.

[Tripps]

I realise that President Trump has few fans on this site, and continually attracts childish nicknames, but I would like to award him

"Best dressed politician and tie wearer of the year"

His suits are immaculate and his tie and shirt collar neckline would win prizes. Credit where credit is due.

PS I rest my case. . .

- and if you can stand it - here's a speech which it is hard to imagine any Archbishop of Canterbury (when they get round to appointing the next one), or King Charles the 'Supreme Governor ' of the C of E, or indeed any British clergyman delivering. I don't think he mentions Islam once.

For the record - I think he is a pillock, and vainglorious egotistical mad person, but that's for the citizens of the USA to deal with - not me. .

President Trump Easter address

[Tizer]

Have you seen that he's repealed the act that was passed to ban those very large shower heads that use ridiculous amounts of water? He said he did it because he couldn't wash his hair properly under the smaller shower heads.

[Stanley]

Closer to home..... see THIS announcement by Keir Starmer.
Pubs in England and Wales will be able to stay open until 01:00 BST to mark the 80th anniversary of VE Day, the government has confirmed. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has said pubs and bars that usually close at 23:00 will be able to keep serving for an extra two hours on Thursday 8 May. "Keeping our pubs open for longer will give people the opportunity to join in celebrations and raise a glass to all of the men and women who served their country, both overseas and at home," Sir Keir said.
More then a hint of bread and circuses.... Kills two birds with one stone, the boozers and the pub trade will both like it.
Chacun a son gout..... I'd rather sit quietly and think about the war and what it was like living through it.

[Stanley]

See THIS BBC report on tariffs.
Updated 6 minutes ago
China has warned countries against appeasing the US in trade talks over President Donald Trump's tariffs. A Chinese commerce ministry spokesperson made the comments in response to reports that Washington plans to put pressure on governments to restrict trade with Beijing in exchange for exemptions to US import taxes. The Trump administration has started talks with trading partners over tariffs, with a Japanese delegation visiting Washington last week and South Korea is set to start negotiations this week. Since returning to the White House in January, Trump has imposed hefty tariffs on Chinese imports, while other countries have also been hit with levies on their goods. "Appeasement cannot bring peace, and compromise cannot earn one respect," the Chinese Commerce Ministry spokesperson said. "China believes that all parties should stand on the side of fairness... and should defend international economic and trade rules and the multilateral trading system." Last week, the Wall Street Journal reported that the US plans to use tariff negotiations to pressure dozens of countries into imposing new barriers on trade with China.
The disruption caused by Trump's tactics is deepening. Eventually the results are going to land at the US door and the result won't be pretty.....

[Tizer]

Saturday's edition of The Times had a long report from its journalists in Ukraine exposing the widespread use of chemical agents against Ukrainian soldiers by the Russian military. Thousands of incidents since the war began. It eased off at one point then the levels jumped sharply when Trump became US President and it's been increasing since then. Drones drop them into the Ukrainian's trenches and strongholds.

[Whyperion]

Saturday's edition of The Times had a long report from its journalists in Ukraine exposing the widespread use of chemical agents against Ukrainian soldiers by the Russian military. Thousands of incidents since the war began. It eased off at one point then the levels jumped sharply when Trump became US President and it's been increasing since then. Drones drop them into the Ukrainian's trenches and strongholds.

Thanks. It is difficult to see who will stand up to these people. I dont think it has been reported in any offical or social US news media.

[Stanley]

I haven't seen any reports of that Peter. I knew our news was managed but is David right? Is our news censored to the extent that some things are ignored?

[Tizer]

I don't believe that news in Britain is deliberately censored except at he level it always has been in the interests of the nation's security. Instead I suspect it's simply because many (most?) journalists now tend to `follow the flow' and not spend enough time searching elsewhere and seeking what others haven't found.

[Tripps]

I don't believe that news in Britain is deliberately censored

I do. I have little doubt about it.

Check out the Zeebrugge ferry electrical vehicle fire. There has not been any reference to at at all in the main Briish Press, and even the international outlets have seemingly not updated their original reports. I find that puzzling - why would they not?. Perhaps it's just my access to the reports that has been frozen?

We left the scene where they had sealed the burning deck, ordred more inert gas, and were worried about reignition, when oxygen was allowed back in. There was talk that the vessel might be a write off. Will we ever discover the outcome? Perhaps I'm looking in the wrong places for my news? Perhaps I need to use a VPN?

There's a George Orwell quote about the state getting you not to believe what you actually observe, but I can't find it. perhaps that's been censored.

PS I found it -

“The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command.”
― George Orwell, 1984


Believe what you want folks - I couldn't care less. Remember investigating scientists thought Uri Geller had supernatural powers - Paul Daniels and James Randi knew what was happening.

***********

Meanwhile the BBC is never short of valuable news such as this -

Steak, mashed potatoes and desserts for astronauts could soon be grown from individual cells in space if an experiment launched into orbit today is successful. A European Space Agency (ESA) project is assessing the viability of growing so-called lab-grown food in the low gravity and higher radiation in orbit and on other worlds.
ESA is funding the research to explore new ways of reducing the cost of feeding an astronaut, which can cost up to £20,000 per day.

[Tizer]

I think it's more to do with what I described above - the way today's journalists tend to be guided more by a sort of `herd instinct', seeing what others are reporting and being influenced by that. Many of them haven't experienced journalism without social media. `If the world isn't already talking and writing about it then it's not news'. Look at bird flu in the US, it's been infecting cattle, pigs and even humans and caused a lot of trouble there but we haven't been hearing about it here. Except for Roland Pease on the World Service programme `Science in Action' who has been reporting on it regularly over the last year. He makes the effort to seek out newsworthy stories rather than waiting to see it elsewhere first.

[Stanley]

I think there is much in what Peter says. Also factor in the number of good investigative journalists who have lost their jobs in the cut backs that are happening. That would explain why the Zeebrugge fire was not only overlooked by the BBC but by all the major print media as well. Cock-up and not conspiracy.
See THIS Report that Starmer doesn't believe that trans-women are women.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer does not believe transgender women are women, his official spokesman has said. It comes after the UK Supreme Court ruled last week that a woman is defined by biological sex under equalities law. In March 2022, when he was leader of the opposition, Sir Keir told the Times, external that "a woman is a female adult, and in addition to that transwomen are women, and that is not just my view - that is actually the law". Asked if Sir Keir still believed that a transgender woman was a woman, the PM's official spokesman said: "No, the Supreme Court judgment has made clear that when looking at the Equality Act, a woman is a biological woman." The spokesman added: "That is set out clearly by the court judgment."
I have to say that I agree with him on this particular matter. Changing a definition on paper or a belief does not alter a person's physical composition. The acid test for me is whether a person has the necessary physical characteristics to conceive.

[Tizer]

As I've mentioned before on OG, as this issue has been going on for years now it was the first time I found myself supporting the US Republicans (a `trans woman' is not a woman) and not the Democrats (a `trans woman' is a woman). Janice Turner has been writing excellent articles explaining it all in The Times over those years. And of course she suffered lots of abuse and threats from the trans lobby as did so many other women who dared to disagree. Meanwhile organisations like Stonewall manipulated gullible people in big companies and institutions to pay them thousands of pounds to `educate' their staff in how to change to suit `trans women'. And as of last week it was still happening in the civil service and universities. People are sometimes confused by the terminology but one man who has suffered abuse for questioning the claims of trans supporters advises us to approach it this way: think of the word `trans' meaning `opposite'. Then a `trans woman' is a man, a `trans man' is a woman.

[Stanley]

As far as I'm concerned anyone with strange ideas about their gender is entitled to think what they want but when they start to impose their views on my world I object. I've spent almost a century thinking I am a man and I'm not changing now....
THIS is at the top of world news.....
Updated 1 hour ago
US President Donald Trump has accused Volodymyr Zelensky of harming peace negotiations, after the Ukrainian president said Kyiv would not recognise Russian control of Crimea. Writing on Truth Social, Trump claimed a deal to end the war was "very close", but that Zelensky's refusal to accept US terms "will do nothing but prolong" the conflict. Earlier, US Vice-President JD Vance laid out the US vision for a deal, saying it would "freeze the territorial lines [...] close to where they are today". Ukraine has long said it will not give up Crimea, a southern peninsula illegally annexed by Russia in 2014. Vance said the deal would mean Ukraine and Russia "are both going to have to give up some of the territory they currently own". The administration has yet to publicly offer specifics about what geographic concessions would have to be made.
Trump still thinks he can 'do a deal' with Putin. What he is actually doing is trying to persuade Putin by giving him what he wants at Ukraine's expense. Zelensky, quite understandably objects to this. Ending the war in Ukraine is important to Trump as it was one of his election promises. It is going to be yet another he fails to deliver on.