Politics

[Christmas Tree 4725]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jun/2...cession-warning

 

G20 summit: Rifts in Toronto as US warns EU of double-dip recession risk

 

The 'Austerians' are being led by the puritanical Germans who see balanced budgets as virtuous, the 'Stimulants' have some traction with Obama now.

 

I must confess to becoming a little bored with focus on "double dip".

 

The difference between being in recession and not is minuscule, a set of percentage points.

 

We've just being officially in recession for 12 months however we all know it has been very tough in the 2/3 years prior and months since.

 

Even if we officially go into it again, it won't really make a great deal of difference to everyday life.

 

The way some talk about double dip is like Armegeddon!

[ChezGiven 0]

There is a difference between a depression and a recession and if you dont get the problem, perhaps you should study the history of our region during the last depression a little more closely.

 

Kenneth Clark (manc-mag's shoe-model) also coming out against the current economic policy today.

[ChezGiven 0]

George Soros, who I believe has some sort of track record warning of the dangers of too much austerity

 

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/currenc...-leave-EMU.html

 

Its going to be interesting if the Tory mantra of reassuring the markets changes when the markets decide recession is a comin'

 

Soros did an article on Project Syndicate the other day too on this.

[Christmas Tree 4725]

There is a difference between a depression and a recession and if you dont get the problem, perhaps you should study the history of our region during the last depression a little more closely.

 

Kenneth Clark (manc-mag's shoe-model) also coming out against the current economic policy today.

 

 

I haven't heard anyone really seriously forecasting a depression like

[spongebob toonpants 3997]

George Soros, who I believe has some sort of track record warning of the dangers of too much austerity

 

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/currenc...-leave-EMU.html

 

Its going to be interesting if the Tory mantra of reassuring the markets changes when the markets decide recession is a comin'

 

Soros did an article on Project Syndicate the other day too on this.

 

Some sobering reading on that site -

Second, countries where bond-market vigilantes have not yet awakened – the US, the UK, and Japan – should maintain their fiscal stimulus while designing credible fiscal consolidation plans to be implemented later over the medium term.

 

http://www.project-syndicate.org/commentar...ubini26/English

 

Lets just hope George Osbourne actually does have a clue what he is doing.

[Christmas Tree 4725]

Just when you thought Liam Byrne had done enough this year with his "theres no money left note", to piss everybody off, this afternoon he went one better

 

I was watching Sky live coverage of Camerons statement to the commons about the G20 summit.

 

Cameron then sits down and Harman stands up to reply. While she's waffling on, most red blooded males will have been watching what looked liked a gorgeous young lady (Bridget?) behind Harman waring a very short red dress.

 

The planets alligned and live on TV she decided to cross her legs, Sharon Stone style, revealing her manifesto when.......

 

Fucking Bald Byrne sticks his head in the way

 

Luckily it was on Sky Plus so here is a photo of his crime. Sorry I cant get it the right way up (mods)

 

 

 

 

What a Cunt!

Edited June 28, 2010 by Christmas Tree

[Guest alex]

CT's probably stalking her by now I reckon.

[ChezGiven 0]

Life after Gordon Brown for Britain's favourite spin doctor

 

http://www.timeoutsydney.com.au/timein/mal...-interview.aspx

 

In the fly-on-the-wall documentary In the Loop, you are seen locking horns with the big wigs in Washington. How are you spending your days now that you're out of a job? I’m catching up on all the things I missed out on when I was in government. You know, the little things that get ignored in the day-to-day political scrum. My mum’s still alive, apparently, so that’s great, I’m planning to see her in the autumn. I’ve got a fuckload of pizza leaflets to read, they’re all piled up by the front door. Some of those meal deals look tremendous value. Just lots to get on top of. Purely by accident I managed to miss every episode of the first series of Lost, so I’m definitely hoping to spend a few evenings now deliberately missing the second series.

 

Why did Labour lose the recent British election? Everyone lost the election. The Tories just lost less badly than we did. Don’t let these fuckers fool you – this is a coalition of people who weren’t quite good enough to win. It’s like Tim Henman watching Eddie the Eagle on a Betamax video.

 

How would you describe the current leadership of Britain? Like a Push-Me-Pull-You with no heads and two arseholes. Only more inward-looking... No, I think it’s brilliant that the old ruling class have got back in - the blue-bloods, the Eton and Oxford boys. This cabinet’s got a gene pool smaller than Tony Abbott’s collection of reggae albums. I mean, I know we’ve had this sort of weird, lefty experiment since 1649 of letting the plebs have a go at being in charge, but that’s not really worked out has it? Look at Britain: budget deficit, unemployment, 10 series of I’m a Celebrity... So, seriously, three cheers for the tiny-cocked no-chins is what I say. And it means you get far more women in the cabinet room, because all these fuckers bring their nannies with them.

 

How do you plan to rescue Britain? Stripped to the waist with a dagger in my teeth and a white paper on how to restore our manufacturing base stuffed up my pickle-shoot.

 

How important is Australian politics in the grand scheme of things? Look, over the years you’ve poured a lot of your energy into sport and racism and that’s great but the UN is largely made up of African and Asian people and whiteys you’ve humiliated in swimming, cricket and hockey so you don’t have much purchase there. But then you’re a barren rock in the arse-end of nowhere – what do you expect? No one cares about your stance on fusion cooking or the labeling of sunscreen.

 

What advice would you have for Julia Gillard if she employed your services as a spin doctor? The government needs to create an environment in which fusion cooking can flourish. We need a thought-through stance on the labeling of sunscreen. And let’s spend less money on sport and racism and more on catching those serial killers and dingo-fuckers running round the outback.

 

Some people have compared you to a guy called Alistair Campbell. Can you see any similarities? Ali Campbell? The lead singer of UB40? Not really. I like red wine – I wouldn’t make a song and dance about it.

 

Our mum always told us that swearing was neither big nor clever. How would you respond to our mum? I suppose you’d expect me to say something like, "You’re an ignorant prudish boring cunt but that’s alright because you’re old and you’re about to piss yourself for the last time and when you die you won’t have to listen to any more profanity. You can content yourself with that thought as the worms tuck into your vag." And I would say something like that. And then I would say it again in French. And Italian. Just to fucking showboat.

 

 

Some great Tuckerisms in the link too.

[Park Life 71]

CT's probably stalking her by now I reckon.

 

The politics thread reaches its nadir.

[ChezGiven 0]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/20...-slash-and-burn

[Guest Gordon McKeag]

What about that fat overcooked mess of a woman Diane Abbott eh? 'West Indian mums will go to the wall for their children.' What so white English mums wouldn't, why racially differentiate? Imagine if someone like Claire Short said "white mums will go to the wall for their children.", you can just imagine Renton's muck all over his screen.

Edited July 5, 2010 by Gordon McKeag

[Meenzer 15531]

I'm amazed it's taken you several days to respond to that. You're losing your touch.

[manc-mag 1]

"Leave the mothers out of this people. Dorothy Mantooth is a saint!"

[Christmas Tree 4725]

What about that fat overcooked mess of a woman Diane Abbott eh? 'West Indian mums will go to the wall for their children.' What so white English mums wouldn't, why racially differentiate? Imagine if someone like Claire Short said "white mums will go to the wall for their children.", you can just imagine Renton's muck all over his screen.

 

 

Please see this perfectly good Labour leadership slagging thread here...

 

http://www.toontastic.net/board/index.php?...0&start=100

[ewerk 30620]

So, they've now decided to scrap the building or renovation of hundreds of schools. Way to deal a double blow to education and the construction industry.

[Craig 6682]

Think this is an easy target to batter the government around the head with tbh. I think whoever got into power, the death bell was chiming for PFI work. Prisons and hospitals will suffer too.

 

Had a check and the BSF projects we're doing in Bristol have survived. We've recently won some in Essex (where some have been scrapped) not sure if ours are safe or not but tbqfh the construction industry has been concentrating their bid submissions away from PFI work for a good 24 months now.

 

As was said on all sides, massive cuts were needed (either this year or next) and PFI work is one of the first to suffer.

[ewerk 30620]

Only half the money was PFI though.

[Craig 6682]

Only half the money was PFI though.

 

True but what difference does that make in the grand scheme of things? Whether Labour got back in, the Tories got a majority or as we are now, it was an almost certainty that PFI projects would be massively cut. As I said, the construction industry has certainly been forcasting to that end since before the banking crisis took hold.

[peasepud 59]

PFI or not, stopping the renovation of schools is a bad thing.

[Craig 6682]

BTW it's a more little ironic that Labour are complaining that an inititive that was implemented by the previous Tory government (and Labour fiercely opposed at the time, considering it a back-door form of privatisation) is being cut back.

[Christmas Tree 4725]

The government will get attacked of Labouritskys for every spending cut but I think th majority of the public know the score.

[PaddockLad 17281]

Isnt the bottom line in PFI just the private sector holding taxpayers to ransome?....would the large building firms have been comitted to building new schools and hospitals if they had only signed conventional contracts which didnt virtually gurantee their profits?

[Craig 6682]

PFI or not, stopping the renovation of schools is a bad thing.

 

A good point but what choice is there honestly? Without meaning to sound pro-Tory and anti-Labour on this argument (because the argument would still be there if the political power was reversed) but given our current financial climate cutbacks, whether they be now, in 6 months or in 12 months are needed and the schools are one of the sectors evidently bearing the brunt.

 

Hospitals and Prisons will follow without a doubt. From an personal employment perspective, it's concerning as it's vastly narrowing our proposals scope for work.

[Craig 6682]

Isnt the bottom line in PFI just the private sector holding taxpayers to ransome?....would the large building firms have been comitted to building new schools and hospitals if they had only signed conventional contracts which didnt virtually gurantee their profits?

 

Trust me, my friend that is definitely not the case. We did a PFI project in the Midlands a couple of years back and lost £50m on it. PFI does NOT guarantee profit.

 

The smart money in PFI work is in the FM contracts that are awarded concurrently with the build job.

[Craig 6682]

The government will get attacked of Labouritskys for every spending cut but I think th majority of the public know the score.

 

Fair's fair CT, if Labour had got back in and cut the PFI (which they almost certainly would have done) the Tories would have been screaming "disgrace!" just as loudly - if not louder.