unbeliever Posted December 16, 2016 Author Share Posted December 16, 2016 (edited) I think Boris should be the UK's 2017 entry. Zip-lining from a wire ---------- Post added 16-12-2016 at 11:36 ---------- He wanted Trump in to play him against Jinping. Unsurprisingly, it's started, with Trump talking to Taiwain and putting the One China policy on the table, and JinPing starting to manoeuvre (still more-) aggressively in the South China Seas, now with live-firing exercises. Meanwhile, Trump is busy surrounding himself with a true realpolitik cabinet. This will end well. Methinks Putin's end game (will, medium-term game) is to neuter the EU and re-grab the Baltics, and more if he can, after neutralising the US. That doesn't sound very practical. The Russian Federation does not have the means. Their annual defence spend is around $66bn. The USA is out spending them by a factor of 8. Even the UK and France could probably take them without any help. Edited December 16, 2016 by unbeliever Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hush Posted December 16, 2016 Share Posted December 16, 2016 And all for something the great majority of the population weren`t that bothered about only 18 months ago. Cameron has a lot to answer for. The world has indeed gone mad. That`s not what this one says : Well clearly they were because they voted to leave. Dress it up with whatever distorted statistics you like but it won't alter the facts. Nor for that matter will trying to pretend that the current situation is any different. History will record that the British people were keen enough on the subject that Cameron was forced to include a pledge in his election manifesto to hold the referendum. The British people were keen enough on the matter to vote in his government and then use the referendum to vote us out of Europe. You can put whatever spin you like on that but it won't alter the facts. Further more I suspect Theresa May would like to be forced into a general election. The polls show she would win anyhow, but should the election be forced on her and the election held with Brexit as the major issue then she would effectively sweep the table. I'm not sure that would be great for our country over the subsequent 5 years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unbeliever Posted December 16, 2016 Author Share Posted December 16, 2016 Well clearly they were because they voted to leave. Dress it up with whatever distorted statistics you like but it won't alter the facts. Nor for that matter will trying to pretend that the current situation is any different. History will record that the British people were keen enough on the subject that Cameron was forced to include a pledge in his election manifesto to hold the referendum. The British people were keen enough on the matter to vote in his government and then use the referendum to vote us out of Europe. You can put whatever spin you like on that but it won't alter the facts. Further more I suspect Theresa May would like to be forced into a general election. The polls show she would win anyhow, but should the election be forced on her and the election held with Brexit as the major issue then she would effectively sweep the table. I'm not sure that would be great for our country over the subsequent 5 years. If May wants an election, without collapsing the government to get it, she'll need to manoeuvre Labour into voting for one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L00b Posted December 16, 2016 Share Posted December 16, 2016 (edited) That doesn't sound very practical. The Russian Federation does not have the means.Means of what? Retaking the Baltics? What's the EU going to do? It doesn't have an army, and is getting mired in a political crisis, to say nothing of the ongoing migrants crisis (and where do they come from, and who's got a big heavy hand in that...?) What's NATO going to do? Trump is busy distancing itself from its commitments, and may soon find itself too committed to its West anyway. Treaty obligations, you say? What, like the mutual defence one which the Ukraine, the US and the Russian Federation signed as a counterpart for the Ukraine handing over its nukes back then? Edit: UK and France you say? What have they done so far, besides asking for and running some economical sanctions? They're not working, btw: refer my earlier post, Russo-Chinese business trumps their effect by far. And Trump is poised to annul the US ones at the stroke of a pen. Russians are so frightened of Franco-British military might, French jets and British drones leave most of Syrian airspace well alone Edited December 16, 2016 by L00b Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tinfoilhat Posted December 16, 2016 Share Posted December 16, 2016 No. It's mostly down to the (year on year-) ill-suited songs. You guys keep putting up Top 40-style Britpop. Eurovisionners want transsexuals and Vikings. Cop on already. The balance is down to having no other geopolitical mates than Ireland. Blue (millennial boy band) aren't britpop fare. And as for power balladess bonnie Tyler? That's got to be solid euro fodder. They didn't even like engelbert Humperdinck for heavens sake! That's purely at the door of unelected, gravy train riding, superstate supporting eu , who hate us and everything British. And, in engelberts case, American. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unbeliever Posted December 16, 2016 Author Share Posted December 16, 2016 Means of what? Retaking the Baltics? What's the EU going to do? It doesn't have an army, and is getting mired in a political crisis, to say nothing of the ongoing migrants crisis (and where do they come from, and who's got a big heavy hand in that...?) What's NATO going to do? Trump is busy distancing itself from its commitments, and may soon find itself too committed to its West anyway. Treaty obligations, you say? What, like the mutual defence one which the Ukraine, the US and the Russian Federation signed as a counterpart for the Ukraine handing over its nukes back then? We don't need the US for this one. I'd bet on France to take them by itself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hush Posted December 16, 2016 Share Posted December 16, 2016 We don't need the US for this one. I'd bet on France to take them by itself. It is odd that no one seems to mention that Russia is rather stretched at the moment trying to prop up a government in Syria, trying to fight a proxy war in Ukraine, trying to keep a lid on its own rebelious republics, and trying to secure its own borders against mainly hostile neighbours. It does rather take the edge off one's ability to back up the posturing against NATO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L00b Posted December 16, 2016 Share Posted December 16, 2016 We don't need the US for this one. I'd bet on France to take them by itself.You miss the point: who's "we", would Britain and/or France go fight for Latvia or Estonia, and do you think the French public would support that intervention any more than the British public would support British intervention? Putin's not been bodily checked in well over a decade, not even on proxy terrain like Syria, and it's not looking like he will be anytime soon: Trump picked Rex Tillerson for State, and his incoming team is already making noises about recognising Crimea. It is odd that no one seems to mention that Russia is rather stretched at the moment trying to prop up a government in Syria, trying to fight a proxy war in Ukraine, trying to keep a lid on its own rebelious republics, and trying to secure its own borders against mainly hostile neighbours. It does rather take the edge off one's ability to back up the posturing against NATO.Who's that then? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melthebell Posted December 16, 2016 Share Posted December 16, 2016 In more shock bad news, the collapse in Sterling since the referendum means Lego prices are going up 5% This is outrageous. The public voted to stick two fingers up at the government, not pay more for their favourite Danish plastic bricks! This Brexit madness must end. And the company that makes those pink wafer biscuits is shedding light 100 jobs, only keeping on something like 29 staff while they found a buyer, citing brexit as a reason Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unbeliever Posted December 16, 2016 Author Share Posted December 16, 2016 You miss the point: who's "we", would Britain and/or France go fight for Latvia or Estonia, and do you think the French public would support that intervention any more than the British public would support British intervention? Putin's not been bodily checked in well over a decade, not even on proxy terrain like Syria, and it's not looking like he will be anytime soon: Trump picked Rex Tillerson for State, and his incoming team is already making noises about recognising Crimea. Who's that then? If the Russians start making serious inroads into eastern Europe, the people of Europe will naturally worry about where they intend to stop. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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