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Perhaps the Europeans had it right.

The UK economy is doing pretty well considering the pandemic.
Public borrowing is lower than forecast just 9 months ago and unemployment is looking good.

It could always be better but tax income is at record levels and it's not all doom and gloom which is nice.

Debatable. Get back to us when you get your next energy bills.
 
The UK economy is doing pretty well considering the pandemic.
Public borrowing is lower than forecast just 9 months ago and unemployment is looking good.

It could always be better but tax income is at record levels and it's not all doom and gloom which is nice.

It is really interesting that John Maynard Keynes was talking about a 15-hour workweek for grandchildren back in the 1930s.

What did Adam Smith say about landlords?

World War II ended the Depression by creating work producing stuff for the Japanese and Germans to blow up. Since the war ended we have replaced that with planned obsolescence.

Curious how we cannot make accounting/finance mandatory in the schools and economists say nothing about the depreciation of durable consumer goods.

GDP is BS!
 
For now. The other units are still under investigation and the German military leadership have said they could close them all.
Inflitration is a problem that spending has no influence on. And that is the problem with far right extremists, as their goal is political power and not monetary rewards.

It was only 1 group of the KSK that was disbanded. The KSK as such still exists.
It shows if you neglect your military, which includes oversight and quality NCOs and officers, then you open the doors for extremists.
If you want good to very good personnel, you have to spent money, lots of money in wages and proper training and proper oversight.
Still, it's my observation that kommando and other special ops and forces troops are most prone to fascist tendencies.

In many countries.

It resides among the most Gung Ho. Those who have contempt and a disregard of civilian authority and life.
 
That's a Hail Mary if I've ever seen one.

And around here I've seen a lot of 'em.

Worse than pot luck they are.
Not sure you understand what has happened in the UK on April 1st.

They have an energy price cap in the UK for gas and electricity. That cap went up by 54% on the 1st of April. The cap went from around 1150 pounds to 1971 pounds for an annual gas and electricity and most likely will go up again in October by another 650 pounds.

It is a very strange system to say the least, but for millions on millions of Brits, such a rise along with food rising and petrol...it means financial ruin.

Add in all the other issues that Brexit has brought and the current government should be gone by now, but they keep finding willing media to hide the truth.
 
Not sure you understand what has happened in the UK on April 1st.
They have an energy price cap in the UK for gas and electricity. That cap went up by 54% on the 1st of April. The cap went from around 1150 pounds to 1971 pounds for an annual gas and electricity and most likely will go up again in October by another 650 pounds. It is a very strange system to say the least, but for millions on millions of Brits, such a rise along with food rising and petrol...it means financial ruin.

Add in all the other issues that Brexit has brought and the current government should be gone by now, but they keep finding willing media to hide the truth.
Blaming MSM is yet another Hail Mary pass.

It's an easy freebee to blame media either, also, only, or mostly. It's habitual.

Glib.

You're just going to have to tough it out. At least it ain't the Blitz izzit. So be thankful for the little things, like not being Ukrainian these dayze where blood, sweat and tears are common virtues. Still, there something to be said for the courageous Ukrainians, and it's being said.


Gazprom: UK customers face challenges to break ties

Contract law puts businesses and councils trying to do the right thing in a sticky spot: they must face high fees, the cost of a new contract and a potential breach of procurement law – or be seen as financing war.

gas-pipeline-1024x680.jpg

Neither does UK get lots of this white stuff along with concomitant temperatures.

  • The reliance of thousands of UK businesses and councils on Russian gas is evidence of the gaps inherent in sanctions regimes in the age of globalisation.
  • UK commercial customers are heavily reliant on Gazprom and face hefty exit fees to leave these contracts, which the government has encouraged them to do.
  • They say they need more government support, including potential full-scale sanctions on Gazprom – which ministers appear reluctant to do.

Russian gas supplier Gazprom’s local arm, UK Gazprom Marketing & Trading Retail, is the largest non-domestic supplier of gas to businesses and public bodies. With thousands of contracts across the country, its customers include McDonald’s, Siemens, Domino’s Pizza, as well as dozens of local authorities, schools and universities. Its market share was 22% and it supplied gas to 178,000 sites, with contracts worth approximately £4bn, based on Capital Monitor estimates. To date, UK government ministers have blocked Gazprom Marketing & Trading Retail from raising capital on UK markets, sanctioned its chief executive, and have encouraged its clients to end existing contracts as soon as possible.


But exiting contracts is where it gets tricky. Many clients are struggling to do so through a combination of expensive break clauses, government regulations, and the extraordinarily high cost of taking on a new contracts amid a global gas crisis. This all puts local authorities and businesses wanting to do the right thing in a tight spot.
The situation is further complicated by rumours Gazprom’s UK subsidiary is on the brink of administration – the UK government is reportedly considering nationalisation – as customers turn their backs.



Looks like the government will have to suck it up for something like 5bn. It's called decoupling, given the Kremlin weaponises everything it can get its hands on. So you gotta do what you gotta do. Indeed, this is no time for the faint of heart.
 
Not sure you understand what has happened in the UK on April 1st.

They have an energy price cap in the UK for gas and electricity. That cap went up by 54% on the 1st of April. The cap went from around 1150 pounds to 1971 pounds for an annual gas and electricity and most likely will go up again in October by another 650 pounds.

It is a very strange system to say the least, but for millions on millions of Brits, such a rise along with food rising and petrol...it means financial ruin.

Add in all the other issues that Brexit has brought and the current government should be gone by now, but they keep finding willing media to hide the truth.

The UK has been through previous energy shortages and we'll get through this.
It's not great but it's not the end of the world that you predict either.
 
The UK has been through previous energy shortages and we'll get through this.
It's not great but it's not the end of the world that you predict either.

Where did I say it was "end of the world"?
 
Blaming MSM is yet another Hail Mary pass.

It's an easy freebee to blame media either, also, only, or mostly. It's habitual.

Glib.

You're just going to have to tough it out. At least it ain't the Blitz izzit. So be thankful for the little things, like not being Ukrainian these dayze where blood, sweat and tears are common virtues. Still, there something to be said for the courageous Ukrainians, and it's being said.


Gazprom: UK customers face challenges to break ties

Contract law puts businesses and councils trying to do the right thing in a sticky spot: they must face high fees, the cost of a new contract and a potential breach of procurement law – or be seen as financing war.

gas-pipeline-1024x680.jpg

Neither does UK get lots of this white stuff along with concomitant temperatures.

  • The reliance of thousands of UK businesses and councils on Russian gas is evidence of the gaps inherent in sanctions regimes in the age of globalisation.
  • UK commercial customers are heavily reliant on Gazprom and face hefty exit fees to leave these contracts, which the government has encouraged them to do.
  • They say they need more government support, including potential full-scale sanctions on Gazprom – which ministers appear reluctant to do.

Russian gas supplier Gazprom’s local arm, UK Gazprom Marketing & Trading Retail, is the largest non-domestic supplier of gas to businesses and public bodies. With thousands of contracts across the country, its customers include McDonald’s, Siemens, Domino’s Pizza, as well as dozens of local authorities, schools and universities. Its market share was 22% and it supplied gas to 178,000 sites, with contracts worth approximately £4bn, based on Capital Monitor estimates. To date, UK government ministers have blocked Gazprom Marketing & Trading Retail from raising capital on UK markets, sanctioned its chief executive, and have encouraged its clients to end existing contracts as soon as possible.


But exiting contracts is where it gets tricky. Many clients are struggling to do so through a combination of expensive break clauses, government regulations, and the extraordinarily high cost of taking on a new contracts amid a global gas crisis. This all puts local authorities and businesses wanting to do the right thing in a tight spot.
The situation is further complicated by rumours Gazprom’s UK subsidiary is on the brink of administration – the UK government is reportedly considering nationalisation – as customers turn their backs.



Looks like the government will have to suck it up for something like 5bn. It's called decoupling, given the Kremlin weaponises everything it can get its hands on. So you gotta do what you gotta do. Indeed, this is no time for the faint of heart.
You are totally missing the point. All European countries are facing these problems, some more than others.

Also this price cap rise, was decided before Russia invaded Ukraine.
 
LOL okay. Just being realistic.... UK is broke and it is only going to get worse.

The UK actually managed to come through the pandemic much better than anyone dared forecast at the start.
Because of the furlough process where the government stepped in and paid people to stay home as long as the company they worked for kept them on we now have a very low unemployment rate.
Where I live there are nowhere near enough people for the jobs available with a brand new warehouse in the town having huge problems getting the 1k new staff they need and being forced to advertise much further away than normal.

The chancellor just a few weeks ago announced that public borrowing is lower than expected.

The UK is certainly not broke but neither are we about to try and buy Alaska.
 
You are totally missing the point. All European countries are facing these problems, some more than others.

Also this price cap rise, was decided before Russia invaded Ukraine.
The cap increase was decided by Putin trying to blackmail EU, NATO, USA into approving his Russo-German Axis of Energy Dominance Pipeline, Nord Stream 2 which has gone kaput as a Euro 11bn investment ruin. Now NS 2 is taking serious gas rather than giving it.

That's more than the UK only, from summer last year, accelerated into the fall, due to Putin's decision for Gazprom not to replenish gas reserves and then to refuse to meet the demand for gas across Europe, not only UK.

I never favored Brexit yet it was somewhat understandable given the Russo-German Axis that was verging on dominance over European energy to include of course over EU and NATO countries. Britain wanted no part of that aspect of being in Europe and for every good reason.

The new coalition government in Berlin has however initiated its reversal of the decades old and miserably failed German model of relations with Russia, ie, the pretense that, with Germany and Russia working in tandem peace would be assured across Europe. It's clear now to even the slowest of the slow Germany knew Putin's pipelines designs all along vis a vis Ukraine while pretending to be an innocent bystander.
 
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Where did I say it was "end of the world"?

You should read some of your own posts back to yourself sometimes. I'm surprised the Uk and USA are still functioning as countries (let alone Democracies) after reading a lot of your stuff over the years.
 
Never said it was. I said that the German military had top elite unit that was disbanded because of far right infiltration.

So why did you add that comment in when I was talking about an EU army? Germany is more than its WW1 and WW2 past and Europe is more than Germany. Europe needs an EU army and events this year prove why.

Yes but few of those are actually in any sort of political power.

Farage wasn't in power but his presence and the voting bloc he represents causes problems - see Brexit for example. Same with those others that I mentioned. They are enough to cause significant shift in policy.

If it was far left groups he could support, then he would have.

I'm aware of that, sowing discontent is more than just funding the far-right.

And so what?

You think Russia would have invaded if Ukraine still had its nukes or any of the ballistic missile systems it had when the USSR broke up? Ironically Ukraine's H-RIM and Sapsan ballistic missiles had testing halted in 2019 - they have no way of retaliating even with conventional warheads against Russia.

The democratic control has failed in Hungary.. the list goes on and on.

Orban change "democratic control" in Hungary to suit himself. You can't use that as an example against democratic controls in other parts of Europe.
 
So why did you add that comment in when I was talking about an EU army? Germany is more than its WW1 and WW2 past and Europe is more than Germany. Europe needs an EU army and events this year prove why.
There is no EU army and there wont be for a while. Will the Ukraine conflict make the push for one intensify? Sure, but it is unrealistic for now as it would require referendums in many EU countries.

Farage wasn't in power but his presence and the voting bloc he represents causes problems - see Brexit for example. Same with those others that I mentioned. They are enough to cause significant shift in policy.
Farage and his goons were highly influential, which is bad enough. You dont have to be in power to press the wrong buttons. In Denmark, the far right Peoples Party was the largest right wing party, but no one wanted to join them in a coalition government. So they became the backers of the rest of the right who formed a government and got huge influence. So much influence that they convinced the sitting government to set up an "open prison" for expelled foreigners that Denmark could not return to their homeland. This was to be made on an island and cost 100s of million. It would have been cheaper to put them up in the Presidential suit in the most expensive hotel in Copenhagen. The irony would be that this island would not have enough capacity for all of them...

You think Russia would have invaded if Ukraine still had its nukes or any of the ballistic missile systems it had when the USSR broke up? Ironically Ukraine's H-RIM and Sapsan ballistic missiles had testing halted in 2019 - they have no way of retaliating even with conventional warheads against Russia.
Of course not. But lets be clear here, Russia´s actions against Ukraine are in part, if not in large part the fault of Ukraine it self. First there was the stealing of gas bound for Europe by Ukraine. Then there was the neo nationalist nazi movement that have been attacking everything from Russians to homosexuals and other minorities for decades. And the final straw was, the Ukrainian government attempting to ban the Russian language and attempt to seize Sevastopol. I in no way support what Russia has done, but to let Ukraine fully off the hook is not fair. They did a lot of shit to provoke the Russian speaking part of its population and the Russian nation itself.

Orban change "democratic control" in Hungary to suit himself. You can't use that as an example against democratic controls in other parts of Europe.
No he removed the democratic control. And that is what happens when the far right gains power. You are seeing it in Poland at the moment. You saw it happening in Italy under Berlusconi, where he controlled all the big media outlets. That has since hence changed some what. Point is, if the far right is allowed... it will remove democracy and crack down on the poor and minorities... just as it has done for centuries.
 
There is no EU army and there wont be for a while.

True but Putin has accelerated minds and it is now clearly on everyone's agenda (except the Hungarians)

You dont have to be in power to press the wrong buttons.

Hope you notice you now agree with what I was saying earlier? Putin put money into these groups and whether they gained power or not - they had huge influence.

But lets be clear here, Russia´s actions against Ukraine are in part, if not in large part the fault of Ukraine it self.

Don't let Russia off the hook or will you blame others for Putin's other actions elsewhere like Grozny and Aleppo?

No he removed the democratic control. And that is what happens when the far right gains power.

Happens with the far left too.

Point is, if the far right is allowed... it will remove democracy and crack down on the poor and minorities... just as it has done for centuries.

Centuries? American democracy for all including minorities is only 60-70 years old. The situation is better in Europe but "centuries" is a very fanciful way of looking at the history and access to democratic rights for the poor and minorities.
 
True but Putin has accelerated minds and it is now clearly on everyone's agenda (except the Hungarians)
Yep

Hope you notice you now agree with what I was saying earlier? Putin put money into these groups and whether they gained power or not - they had huge influence.
I have not changed my opinion or views.. so guessing it is a language issue and we have agreed all the time?

Don't let Russia off the hook or will you blame others for Putin's other actions elsewhere like Grozny and Aleppo?
Oh Russia is never off the hook. What Putin has really done should at all times be condemned. But why should we ignore what others have done, when that is similar or in some rare cases... worse than what Putin has done? Is the hatred for Putin so bad that we should ignore Nazi infiltration, abuses by other parties in the conflict or even the remote chance that some of it is staged or it was in fact someone else that in the Fog of War, decided to commit a crime? It is not like it has not happened before.

Happens with the far left too.
When has this happened in the last 50 years? It has happened plenty of times with the right wing during the last 50 years.

Centuries? American democracy for all including minorities is only 60-70 years old. The situation is better in Europe but "centuries" is a very fanciful way of looking at the history and access to democratic rights for the poor and minorities.
Okay I admit I did not explain myself well enough. What I meant, was that the right had kept people under their foot for centuries via various methods and the advent of so called democracy has lessened the ability of the right to keep power. This in turn also means that, when they do get power, and there are no checks and balances.. then they will strive towards trying to return to "the good old days" where they had absolute power. This is what has happened in Hungary, happening in Poland and Serbia. One could even argue that it has happened in the UK, since the Tory party has been in power for over a decade and there are literally no checks or balances against the current government. They can do whatever they want. They just removed the Fixed Parliament Act, which is a good thing... but in doing so they made it so that the government does not have to call an election for an additional 6 months on top of the current limits.

And before you go on about "the left does it as well"... where has the left done so in a democratic like state since WW2?
 
Yes it does - Africa and South America.
First off I said democracies.. meaning existing democracies. Most nations in Africa do not fall under this.
Secondly... what nations specific?

Any so-called Marxist state in Africa would count.
But they were never democratic to begin with. They were former colonies that were abandoned by their masters.
 
For quite a while the US has castigated the European members of NATO for their lackluster investments in their military forces. We are now witness to the actual performance of the Russian Army, the prime concern of NATO. Compared to what we have been led to believe by some, it is proving to be what the Chinese would call a paper tiger. The military of one small nation, certainly not armed with the latest weaponry, appears to be able to fight the Russian Army to a standstill. NATO forces, as presently constituted, would probably be able to do at least as well, if not considerably better, against Russia.

Meanwhile, the citizens of the NATO countries have had monies available for their citizens which would have gone to funding an excessively strong military.

And so it goes . . . .

Regards, stay safe 'n well 'n remember the Big 5.
Except that Russia and China have a limitless partnership; the genie is out of the bottle already and the west needs to catch up before it all goes to shit.
 
Except that Russia and China have a limitless partnership; the genie is out of the bottle already and the west needs to catch up before it all goes to shit.
Each and every Chinese dynasty has failed and the current and still young CCP-PRC Dynasty is failing already.

Russia collapsed twice during the 20th century and with sanctions because of Ukraine Russians are now going for the hat trick.

Let me put it this way, ie, looking over the past thousand years in Russia and the past 5000 years in China, the more things don't change the more they remain the same. In word, failure.
 
Each and every Chinese dynasty has failed and the current and still young CCP-PRC Dynasty is failing already.

Russia collapsed twice during the 20th century and with sanctions because of Ukraine Russians are now going for the hat trick.

Let me put it this way, ie, looking over the past thousand years in Russia and the past 5000 years in China, the more things don't change the more they remain the same. In word, failure.
Funny enough I agree.. but there is a big "but".

It is more like "empires" fall regardless of who it is. Yes Russia has collapsed twice during the 20th century, and went through multiple revolts and civil strife during the centuries before. China has a long history of internal conflicts and collapse, but also they were relatively stable for centuries.. And here comes the but...

The Mongol Empire, French Empire, the Spanish, the British, the Portuguese and many many other large empires/powerful nations collapsed usually after centuries of domination. One could argue that the American Empire (or whatever you want to call it) is in its decline and destined to "collapse" in some way or form.

Basically, this is how the world has been for millennium.
 
That's a Hail Mary if I've ever seen one.

And around here I've seen a lot of 'em.

Worse than pot luck they are.
The government removed energy bill caps and they have risen 50% overnight, despite the energy companies showing billions in profit before the rises. 4000 people froze in their homes last winter, and the government home insulation scheme lapsed this very month, so those unfortunates who might have managed to reduce their exposure are left with the stark choice of heating or eating.
British elderly, who survived the Covid onslaught, and already suffer the lowest pensions in Europe, have had a derisory rise this year of less than half the current inflation rate. It's going to be bad.
 
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