Trade Deal, or No Deal...

[french frank]

There was an interesting report the other day which suggested that almost all governments had become more authoritarian since the start of the pandemic. There is excellent reason to be very suspicious of every move in the direction of coercion, increased surveillance,controls and so on.
Much is being done under the cover of covid, and also to an extent brexit.

I think there is a middle way. Not far (enough) from me there's a tattoo parlour. The owner refused to close it during the lockdown, he has been raided twice by council officers and police, had his equipment removed and been fined £1,000 (which he refuses to pay). Still he said he would reopen as soon as he has re-equipped. His argument is that under Magna Carta and common law he doesn't have to obey any law that he doesn't consent to. Covid 19 doesn't enter his argument at all.

Where is the reasonable line drawn?

[Dave2002]

.... who in my opinion is a boastful fool ....

He's still trying to figure out whether he's an idiot pretending to be a genius, or a genius pretending to be an idiot.

He might just strike lucky, but there is a strong danger that many of us will be collateral damage.

[Frances_iom]

He's still trying to figure out whether he's an idiot pretending to be a genius, or a genius pretending to be an idiot.
...

He was a disaster as a Foreign Secretary - there was an excellent interview on the R4 World this weekend cut short by the need to cut to an advert with the guy who was UK rep in Brussels + who resigned when Ms May refused to accept his advice - he stated that all along the Brexiters had misunderstood the EU and the fact that the common market + fair competition was their sine qua non. He has been pointing out all along that with the UK not understanding this, a no-deal was almost a certainty - his only comfort was that the dinner on Wednesday may had just about knocked some realisation into BJ + that the parties were still talking.

[DracoM]

Agreed - was that incisive as an interview and WHY, oh WHY a it cut short? Important but shoved right up against where Ed Stourton could not push it.

[oddoneout]

He's still trying to figure out whether he's an idiot pretending to be a genius, or a genius pretending to be an idiot.

He might just strike lucky, but there is a strong danger that many of us will be collateral damage.

Or else thinks he's a genius with the misfortune to be surrounded by idiots who don't agree... Sadly for us I don't believe he is actually all that clever in the ways that matter for someone in his position, not helped by innate laziness. Intellectual ability isn't always accompanied by common sense, empathy or even basic life skills, and early promise doesn't always progress into adulthood from childhood.

[Serial_Apologist]

Agreed - was that incisive as an interview and WHY, oh WHY a it cut short? Important but shoved right up against where Ed Stourton could not push it.

The BBC has an enviable record for raising issues of critical importance, and steadfast failure to allow time to even begin to solve them. This happens almost every morning, five minutes before the conclusion of Toady. "Yes well I'm afraid we're out of time".

I'm glad people are now waking up to this - no pun intended.

[oddoneout]

There was an interesting report the other day which suggested that almost all governments had become more authoritarian since the start of the pandemic. There is excellent reason to be very suspicious of every move in the direction of coercion, increased surveillance,controls and so on.
Much is being done under the cover of covid, and also to an extent brexit.

It's difficult to see how the pandemic could be handled without a certain increase in authoritarianism - even the Dutch have had to accept that rules are necessary to try and control infection rates. I'm possibly not as far along the scale as you(yet!) about the extent of travel, but I am - and in fact have been for quite a while - suspicious of what is being pushed through under cover of distractions and 'justification' from Covid and Brexit. I have thought for some time that it is convenient that Covid will provide the means to keep disaffected punters under control when(I have stopped believing in 'if') the practical difficulties from what I gather is now called 'transend' start to hit home.

[Serial_Apologist]

early promise

Not the first instance of an Eton education leading the country up the garden path.

[oddoneout]

Not the first instance of an Eton education leading the country up the garden path.

Not to do with Brexit but relevant to your comment?

...beginnings of an answer to one of the great questions about Eton: what process repeatedly produces disasters on the scale of Boris Johnson, David Cameron and Jacob Rees-Mogg? If we knew, we might be better able to protect ourselves. Anyone who met Etonians at university will probably have wondered at some point what went on for five years to leave many of them both so unbelievably assured and yet so ordinary.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/dec/13/just-what-is-the-special-eton-magic-that-allows-it-to-turn-out-epic-oafs-year-after-year

I rather like the term 'epic oafs'.

[Serial_Apologist]

Not to do with Brexit but relevant to your comment?

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/dec/13/just-what-is-the-special-eton-magic-that-allows-it-to-turn-out-epic-oafs-year-after-year

I rather like the term 'epic oafs'.

Some constriction of blood flow to the brain from wearing the Eton Collar, maybe...

[oddoneout]

Some constriction of blood flow to the brain from wearing the Eton Collar, maybe...

Sending it in a different direction...

[Serial_Apologist]

Sending it in a different direction...

It, and all of us!!

[french frank]

I rather like the term 'epic oafs'.

Q. How do you polish a turd?

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

Some posts have been deleted. Attacking other posters remains a breach of House Rules, so the offending posts (and those containing quotations from them them) have been removed.

Sometimes an 'attacker' may post something about another forumist in jest, but a characteristic of the written word is that its blandness means it can be interpreted in a number of ways. Emojis can help to avoid giving a negative impression.

[Anastasius]

I think there is a middle way. Not far (enough) from me there's a tattoo parlour. The owner refused to close it during the lockdown, he has been raided twice by council officers and police, had his equipment removed and been fined £1,000 (which he refuses to pay). Still he said he would reopen as soon as he has re-equipped. His argument is that under Magna Carta and common law he doesn't have to obey any law that he doesn't consent to. Covid 19 doesn't enter his argument at all.

Where is the reasonable line drawn?

What an intriguing viewpoint he has. So pursuing his line of reasoning to its logical conclusion, under Magna Carta and common law I don't consent to the crime of murder and so can simply toddle along to where he lives and shoot him ! Personally, given where he is coming from, that sounds like a result to me. Now, where does he live ?

It does seem to me that while you are all discussing angels on pinheads that people are still getting infected and people are still dying. BJ is a total idiot but let's not forget what's really important.