Brexit.

[Kamilah Hauptmann]

In the Dutch newspaper Algemeen Dagblad today:
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(Translated with Google Translate and a tiny bit improved with Sid's far from perfect knowledge of the English language.)

A no deal seems to be a real serious possibility now in the eyes of the EU.

Last month I saw Dutch produce in the grocery. In Canada. Nine time zones from the Netherlands.

I'd never seen anything like that before aside from beer, chocolate, and assorted specialties.

 

[Luisa Land]

Last month I saw Dutch produce in the grocery. In Canada. Nine time zones from the Netherlands.

I'd never seen anything like that before aside from beer, chocolate, and assorted specialties.

Maybe a result of CETA, the trade agreement between Canada and the EU. which entered into force some time ago.. but I dont know

 

[Innula Zenovka]

 

[Kamilah Hauptmann]

When you're on holiday and can't get enough Brexit.

'Pig' British tourists to be deported from New Zealand

 

[Kara Spengler]

Infrared and ultraviolet or bust.

 

[detrius]

When you're on holiday and can't get enough Brexit.

'Pig' British tourists to be deported from New Zealand

That looks like the plot of a "The Simpsons" episode.

 

[Innula Zenovka]

Downing Street draws up Final Say referendum on Brexit document claiming it would take over a year

Doesn't mean much on its own, but at least it's on the radar. For what it's worth, I think the time estimates are reasonable -- they've been criticised as being too conservative (as it were) but the criticisms are based on figures that represent the bare minimum of time it would need.

In practice, I suspect things would take considerably longer than the minimum since there are plenty of highly contentious issues to settle -- how many options and what they should be, whether Brits resident elsewhere in the EU and EU 27 citizens resident in the UK should vote in this referendum, whether 16 year olds should vote, how to police the campaigns to try to avoid a repetition of the financial and other abuses associated with the Leave Campaign in the previous one -- and no government majority.

One thing I think we've learned from the last three years is that committing to a tight timescale because "it'll all be easy to sort out" is not a safe plan.

 

[Tigger]

Andy Serkis' rendition of Bohemian Rhapsody, performed as Theresa May lamenting her life and brexit in the voice of Gollum.

 

[Tigger]

Is this peak brexit? UKIP turns on Nigel Farage:

 

[Luisa Land]

As more as I read about Brexit and Britain today, as more I have the feeling that in Britain the class-charactre of the society is very distinct. Sure in other countries you find also classes and big differences between the richer and poorer parts of the society.
But I have the impression in UK the Arrogance of the upper class is more explicit, the working class has a deeper feeling of being confronted with contempt and their needs are being overlooked.
That is an explanation to me, why Labour's leader is on the radical left. But the sad thing is, imho this radical stance (instead of a more realistic one) leads to hopes, which must be disappointed and pushing the neglected part of the inhabitans into a feeling of deeper fornlornness
prone for simple, but wrong explanations, who are the culprits...

this phenomenon can also be found outside Britain, but in the UK it is very strong

 

[Innula Zenovka]

Quite apart from the Boris Johnson special loop, this is a very useful guide to the whole debacle.

Today's BoJo special is this:

 

[Tigger]

I think it's true that our society is very much stratified by 'class' and that social mobility in the UK is very low. This, to my view, is further acerbated by public schools, honours and titles. Note that in the UK a public school is in no way open to the public, except the obscenely wealthy and public school boys are hugely over-represented in politics, law and the media. Only 7% of the population are educated at Public Schools but 74% of all judges attended public school. As did 71% of barristers, 50% of cabinet ministers, 71% of the military ranked 2 star general or higher, and on and on. Even left wing man of the people and flag waving socialist Jeremy Corbyn is a product of the public school system.

And this:

is the school that Tony Blair went to. It may well be hogwarts from the look of the place.

See:
Britain’s private school problem: it’s time to talk
Posh Boys: How the English Public Schools Ruin Britain – review
1,000 state schools have no applicants to elite career schemes

 

[Innula Zenovka]

I think it's true that our society is very much stratified by 'class' and that social mobility in the UK is very low. This, to my view, is further acerbated by public schools, honours and titles. Note that in the UK a public school is in no way open to the public, except the obscenely wealthy and public school boys are hugely over-represented in politics, law and the media. Only 7% of the population are educated at Public Schools but 74% of all judges attended public school. As did 71% of barristers, 50% of cabinet ministers, 71% of the military ranked 2 star general or higher, and on and on. Even left wing man of the people and flag waving socialist Jeremy Corbyn is a product of the public school system.

And this:

is the school that Tony Blair went to. It may well be hogwarts from the look of the place.

See:
Britain’s private school problem: it’s time to talk
Posh Boys: How the English Public Schools Ruin Britain – review
1,000 state schools have no applicants to elite career schemes

Class and status are very slippery terms, to my mind. Seems to me a truism that, in most advanced capitalist societies, the best predictor (though obviously not infallible) of someone's wealth and income is the wealth and income of their parents. It's also the case that that wealth tends to translate itself to political power and vice versa.

That, to my mind, is the nature of capitalist societies and I'm not at all sure that it's notably more true of the UK than of other places.

In the case of British politicians and judges, I'd suggest that the important educational institutions are the universities -- particularly Oxford and Cambridge -- that people have attended. For various historical reasons, some public schools and some independent grammar schools are very good at preparing pupils for these two elite universities and at encouraging them to apply.

In the case of the bar and the judiciary, it's certainly the case (and was even more so 30 or 40 years ago) that barristers earn very little during the first few years they practice, and that, combined with the necessarily protracted undergraduate and professional training periods, means that having a family who can support you through the training and first few years of practice is a great help in making a successful career.

 

[Tigger]

Class and status are very slippery terms, to my mind. Seems to me a truism that, in most advanced capitalist societies, the best predictor (though obviously not infallible) of someone's wealth and income is the wealth and income of their parents. It's also the case that that wealth tends to translate itself to political power and vice versa.

That, to my mind, is the nature of capitalist societies and I'm not at all sure that it's notably more true of the UK than of other places.

Yeah, it is. Much, much worse. There are very few countries that are as bad as us.

In the case of British politicians and judges, I'd suggest that the important educational institutions are the universities -- particularly Oxford and Cambridge -- that people have attended. For various historical reasons, some public schools and some independent grammar schools are very good at preparing pupils for these two elite universities and at encouraging them to apply.

In the case of the bar and the judiciary, it's certainly the case (and was even more so 30 or 40 years ago) that barristers earn very little during the first few years they practice, and that, combined with the necessarily protracted undergraduate and professional training periods, means that having a family who can support you through the training and first few years of practice is a great help in making a successful career.

Well to my mind you are excusing privelege. It's the rich schools being good at getting their students into these universities, and by extension the poor schools being bad at it, that's the cause. That's unacceptable. It's up to the universities to make sure that they capture the talent from everywhere, regardless.

More than 60% of Oxford University students went to private or grammar school, figures show

 

[Innula Zenovka]

Well to my mind you are excusing privelege. It's the rich schools being good at getting their students into these universities, and by extension the poor schools being bad at it, that's the cause. That's unacceptable. It's up to the universities to make sure that they capture the talent from everywhere, regardless.

More than 60% of Oxford University students went to private or grammar school, figures show

No, I'm not excusing anything. I'm saying that, at least in politics, I think the advantage comes from having attended Oxford or Cambridge (and particularly Oxford) and taken advantage of the networking opportunities available there rather than simply from having attended a public or private school.

 

[Innula Zenovka]

 

[Govi]

Quite apart from the Boris Johnson special loop, this is a very useful guide to the whole debacle.

Today's BoJo special is this:

As a turkey himself, he may not be able to distinguish between his mates and an actual country.
Aside: Has anyone investigated whether the BoJo turkey and the Farage Barrage colluded with Russia?

 

[Innula Zenovka]

The Guardian's Carole Cadwalladr is the one to follow for Brexit/Russia/Facebook/Cambridge Analytica

Boris Johnson in spotlight as questions raised over Russian influence on UK
Brexit, the ministers, the professor and the spy: how Russia pulls strings in UK
Boris Johnson met ‘London professor’ linked to FBI’s Russia investigation

 

[Porsupah Ree]

Led by Donkeys is crowdfunding to put up deservedly famous Brexit tweets and quotes on billboards. Their initial £10,000 target was met in three hours. ^_^ So, they're going for as many as they can afford by mid-February.

When we started this we were six friends who wanted to highlight the hypocrisy of our politicians on Brexit.
Armed with ladders, roller brushes and a treasure trove of damning statements by our leaders, we slapped up their biggest lies onto posters around the country.

But this guerrilla operation has its limitations.

Firstly, the people who own those billboards generally tear ours down or cover them up after a day.

Secondly, we only have so many arms that can do this work (and small kids who need our attention too).
And thirdly, we've got loads more amazing quotes (Boris, IDS, Farage...) that need to be out there.

So we’re proposing to do something different: to turn this guerrilla operation into one of the biggest people-funded billboard protests this country has ever seen.

Let's paste these tweets* all over Britain

 

[Free]

Who's willing to quit first if/when their predictions turn sour?