Rayvin

"Space force" is probably the dumbest, least cool thing he could call it. It should be an extension of the navy...

Aye, agree on a draw being best. Although if we beat Huddersfield, relegation worries will more or less cease for me. We'll find another 5 points across the remaining 7 games fairly easily IMO.

He's the Chief Global Strategist of an Investment Firm. Do those sorts of companies often put nutters in key roles? I'm curious though, in what way is he a nutter? Keeping in mind that the current cabinet contains one Boris Johnson.

Has anyone mentioned that John Redwood (Tory MP) has claimed that austerity was unnecessary in his blog last week? This is the pro-Brexit guy who is also the head of some manner of investment firm which recommended to its clients that they should move their money out of the UK following the referendum - so while he's a cynical bastard, he is at least clued up on finance. His own words: I have not been worried about the state deficit for sometime, ever since Mr Brown found out that the UK state can literally print money to pay its bills. Mr Osborne, originally a critic of this in opposition, then discovered its charms in office as well. It turned out to have no adverse consequences on shop price inflation, though of course it caused massive price inflation in government bonds, because it was accompanied by severe pressure against bank lending to the private sector to avoid an inflationary blow off. I always adjust the outstanding debt by the £435 bn the state has bought up, as this is in no sense a debt we owe. So our government borrowing level (excluding future state pensions which some here worry about and which have always been pay as you go out of taxation) is modest by world standards at around 65% of GDP, and at current interest rates is affordable. Most of the state debt we owe to each other anyway. The government owes it to taxpayers who own the debt in their pension funds and insurance policies. The state can always raise enough money to pay the domestic bills backed by the huge powers to tax, and as we have just seen when credit expansion and inflation are low it can also use liquidity created by the monetary authorities. Austerity was an unnecessary action, a cover merely for stripping back the state to adhere to Thatcherite dogma, and the Tories pursuing it has brought us to the brink of ruin with Brexit (which would never, ever have happened without it), sent the Labour party to the left in a search for answers, and dismantled centrism. So there you go CT. The Tories fucked your newly beloved centrism to within an inch of its life, with something that many of us told you repeatedly, was an outright lie. Article goes on to say, about Redwood: He has admitted there is no need for a government to balance its books. He has admitted QE cancels debt. He has then admitted the whole ‘passing debt to the next generation’ phobia is wrong. And he has admitted as a result that there was no reason for austerity, the imposition of which served no economic purpose. As a result he has, in two paragraphs, shredded the whole economic rationale on which he has been elected to Parliament. And in so doing he has driven coach and horses through all those who still say that austerity must continue, because what he has done is make clear that if this is economically unnecessary then it can only be driven by incompetence, or a hatred of government, or class warfare, or all three. He is right on this. Deficits do not matter if there is less than full employment. And governments can cancel debt, at will. Debt, in fact, only exists as a favour to financial markets, who desperately need it but have no hold over government as a result. What does matter is that people like him do not want to use this knowledge for the good of people in this country and elsewhere. It is time others did. http://www.taxresearch.org.uk/Blog/2018/03/06/john-redwood-admits-it-there-never-was-a-reason-for-austerity/

Cat memes are probably the apex of civlisation as far as humanity is concerned, so he's probably right tbh.

Does anyone know why he was sacked, officially...?

Guilty

CT, I would have said the same thing as Corbyn. Apparently half of this board would have. Sorry that this depresses you, but these questions have to be asked.

CT, can you tell us why criticising the government for this is not acceptable. What is it exactly that makes it offensive?

CT is going to be crucified over Brexit again and again for the next 10 years

It is exactly like the 'guns' situation in the US. Or when Corbyn was calling out the government over Grenfell. If the immediate aftermath of shit like this isn't the time to make a political point, I don't know when is. As Alex says, the only reason people complain that it's 'not the right time' is because they know damn fucking well that this is the -only- time it will be uncomfortable for them to have to deal with the criticism. Indeed the only time anyone will actually care.

But as I said, I knew I wouldn't have been advocating for communism to be applied. Here is my actual quote for anyone interested "I have offered a solution btw, I 'suggested' a government that wasn't wedded to the Thatcherite notions of how society should be run. Granted it seems that the current iteration of this suggestion isn't sufficiently competent to make it work/get into power in the first place, but realistically there's no alternative if you believe, as I do, that the Blairites haven't actually understood what is going on. If they get back into power, the whole steady descent continues. Granted, not as quickly as under the Tories." EDIT - and in theory, communism is fair.

In a world where Sunderland is the centre of the universe maybe? Dark and terrible place iyam.

Ah you amended the post. To be honest I think that just demonstrates my consistency I was certain on my view of this because I have never once believed that the UK should adopt communism. In fact I don't recall ever feeling any particular positivity towards communism. I assumed that the post you quoted was relevant in some wider context but knew myself well enough to be certain that whatever that context was, I wasn't advocating communism Everything I've said since has simply reflected my view on it further I guess I shouldn't have been lazy and just checked the context when you posted it.

Communism is entirely unworkable in practice but in theory, fair. Happy?

CT, this is pathetic The Tories were what, branding him a traitor a little while ago? And they've tied him to Pro-Russian groups repeatedly. Pot calling kettle black. Hoisted by their own petard. Fucking rekt, as the kids would say. They can get to fuck. I may be slightly drunk.

Sorry

Of course we're going to be screwed over by countries that are this much more powerful than us. China will be the same. This is why the EU was such a good thing. It's economically stronger than both, or at least would be if we could centralise economic affairs. Fucking stupid.

I think you can rightly push them hard on this, but domestic couriers are a low margin enterprise, and I would imagine that they will not go as far as reimbursing you for the failed delivery. You should absolutely get another free saturday delivery though. These companies aren't as well run as the international ones IMO. You get the presentation of a slick outfit at the front end, but behind the scenes it's a bunch of guys who don't really care what your package is, or when you need it.

Well, you know how I love to apologise.

Agree on how he improves the players around him for certain though. Surety of self and confidence I guess.

Ah apologies if I'm repeating something someone else said..

Was just reading a comment BTL on the Guardian's match report from our game at the weekend, and one guy pointed out the following: Great win for Newcastle, though probably the easiest of the season. There's a fascinating stat out there. The first ten games of the season, where Lascelles played the 90, we got 14 points. For the next six, when he was injured, we got 1 point. Since he's returned, we've picked up 17 points from 14. So 1.3 points per game WITH Lascelles, 0.2 points per game WITHOUT. To put that into context, we'd be on for 49 points over a season with Lascelles playing. And in that spell without him, we had some very winnable games - WBA away, Watford, Everton and Leicester at home. 49 points would have us 6th, above Arsenal. So for all I'm saying Lascelles is replaceable at £50m, this is a good argument that I could be totally fucking wrong

Grim

Tbh I actually hadn't considered the driving bit. Fair enough.