Obvious onslaught on one's oakus...

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BoJo seems to have gone stir crazy, a sort of demob happy in reverse. The overbudget, behind schedule, no business case, no environmental case, unwanted and unneeded HS2, the Huawei bullet (now dodged maybe), possible fuel tax rises, green zero carbon eco-lunacy etc. money money money.



The graph highlights the good work done (slowly but surely) over the last decade to reduce borrowing (spending!). Now it is all set to go pear shaped. That said, the graph really does pop the bubble and highlight the lies of the 'austerity' screamers* (quadruple, triple and double the 2007 borrowing from 2009-2016...and they didn't hide it under the mattress). Spending has been more than income since 2002.

Graph hat-tip: Guido.

Full info debt, deficit, borrowing, receipts etc: UK Gov ONS Public Sector Finances.



* It may have been just a 'vote for me' gimmick but BoJo was wrong to say "austerity" was 'not the way forward'.

Obvious onslaught on one's oakus...

---

BoJo seems to have gone stir crazy, a sort of demob happy in reverse. The overbudget, behind schedule, no business case, no environmental case, unwanted and unneeded HS2, the Huawei bullet (now dodged maybe), possible fuel tax rises, green zero carbon eco-lunacy etc. money money money.

The graph highlights the good work done (slowly but surely) over the last decade to reduce borrowing (spending!). Now it is all set to go pear shaped. That said, the graph really does pop the bubble and highlight the lies of the 'austerity' screamers* (quadruple, triple and double the 2007 borrowing from 2009-2016...and they didn't hide it under the mattress). Spending has been more than income since 2002.

Graph hat-tip: Guido.
Full info debt, deficit, borrowing, receipts etc: UK Gov ONS Public Sector Finances.

* It may have been just a 'vote for me' gimmick but BoJo was wrong to say "austerity" was 'not the way forward'.

Orthodoxy overkill...

---

...and identity politics will kill the Labour Party: the 'progressive' Left is eating itself. "Former Labour voters must be looking at this nonsense and congratulating themselves for abandoning this lost, deluded party.", so concludes Brendan O'Neill in his scathing article in Spiked! decribing the Labour Party and "The purge of the unwoke": "Labour is plotting a Stalinist purge of anyone who questions the cult of transgenderism."...
...the purge demands unquestioning loyalty to one of the key orthodoxies of identitarian extremism: that 'trans women are women' and 'trans men are men'.

"The Stalinist vindictiveness of the purge is made clear in its demonisation of two perfectly reasonable campaign groups: Woman’s Place UK and the LGB Alliance. The former is an organisation of feminists concerned that gender self-identification could lead to born males entering women-only spaces – such as changing rooms, rape-crisis centres and female prisons – and which campaigns for the preservation of women’s sex-based rights. The latter is a gay-rights group concerned that transgenderism erases the specificity of the homosexual experience – of same-sex attraction – for example by allowing people with actual penises to identify as lesbian. Scandalously, the purge refers to these two organisations as ‘hate groups’. It says Labour members should ‘organise and fight against’ these despicable, hateful outfits."

This isn't a minor group within Labour: two of the final three leader candidates have signed up to it, literally. Lisa Nandy, the Labour Party leadership candidate I thought best of a very poor bunch (and the only one untainted by the Corbyn shit-show) has signed.



Let them wither, but somebody needs to keep BoJo on the straight and narrow; will we have to rely on [the great] Nigel Farage again?

Orthodoxy overkill...

---

...and identity politics will kill the Labour Party: the 'progressive' Left is eating itself. "Former Labour voters must be looking at this nonsense and congratulating themselves for abandoning this lost, deluded party.", so concludes Brendan O'Neill in his scathing article in Spiked! decribing the Labour Party and "The purge of the unwoke": "Labour is plotting a Stalinist purge of anyone who questions the cult of transgenderism."... ...the purge demands unquestioning loyalty to one of the key orthodoxies of identitarian extremism: that 'trans women are women' and 'trans men are men'.

"The Stalinist vindictiveness of the purge is made clear in its demonisation of two perfectly reasonable campaign groups: Woman’s Place UK and the LGB Alliance. The former is an organisation of feminists concerned that gender self-identification could lead to born males entering women-only spaces – such as changing rooms, rape-crisis centres and female prisons – and which campaigns for the preservation of women’s sex-based rights. The latter is a gay-rights group concerned that transgenderism erases the specificity of the homosexual experience – of same-sex attraction – for example by allowing people with actual penises to identify as lesbian. Scandalously, the purge refers to these two organisations as ‘hate groups’. It says Labour members should ‘organise and fight against’ these despicable, hateful outfits."

This isn't a minor group within Labour: two of the final three leader candidates have signed up to it, literally. Lisa Nandy, the Labour Party leadership candidate I thought best of a very poor bunch (and the only one untainted by the Corbyn shit-show) has signed.

Let them wither, but somebody needs to keep BoJo on the straight and narrow; will we have to rely on [the great] Nigel Farage again?

Outwardly on our own; openly optimistic...

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Alone again although not quite: we are open for business with the world. I still am not 100 percent convinced by BoJo but by God it makes a hell of a differnece to have an overtly optimistic and patriotic Prime Minister again.



Today his written statement is promising: "The Government remains committed in all circumstances to securing all those benefits for the whole of the UK and to strengthening our Union."..."In its negotiations with the EU, the Government will be acting on behalf of the UK Crown Dependencies and Overseas Territories: the whole UK family. The UK proposes to agree similar arrangements with the EFTA states."

But...today's speech is outstanding.

"And - you know where this is going - today if we get it right, if we have the courage to follow the instincts and the instructions of the British people, this can be another such moment on the launching pad."

"We are re-emerging after decades of hibernation as a campaigner for global free trade.

"And frankly it is not a moment too soon because the argument for this fundamental liberty is now not being made...

...And since these notions were born here in this country, it has been free trade that has done more than any other single economic idea to raise billions out of poverty and incredibly fast."

We do extraordinary things as I never tire of telling you.

Tea to China, cake to France, TV aerials to South Korea and so on.

Boomerangs to Australia - Nigel Farage to America. Then he came back of course. [Ows: Thank God!]

We are embarked now on a great voyage, a project that no one thought in the international community that this country would have the guts to undertake, but if we are brave and if we truly commit to the logic of our mission - open, outward-looking - generous, welcoming, engaged with the world championing global free trade now when global free trade needs a global champion,

I believe we can make a huge success of this venture, for Britain, for our European friends, and for the world.

Very well worth a read of the whole thing, or a watch and listen (speech begins @3:25, don't miss Q&A at the end, LOL).



Plus another good read: Leaving the EU is a joyous expression of national self-confidence. For that, we have Thatcher to thank. (Conservative Home):

"However, Thatcher changed everything. Her radical reforms, unapologetic patriotism, uncompromising will and remarkable character lifted the nation out of its post-war torpor and restored its self-confidence... 



"A British ‘economic miracle’ was being enviously mooted on the continent – a truly remarkable turnaround from the stagnation and misery afflicting the nation just 10 years earlier...

"Most important, though, was the national pride restored by Thatcher’s indomitable spirit and sense of moral purpose. 



"If Britain joined what was to become the EU in a moment of disorientation and self-doubt, it voted out as a confident, self-assured, optimistic, outward-looking and independent nation state.

"For this, we have Thatcher to thank. And as a delicious accompaniment, she posthumously drove a stake through the heart of her vampiric nemesis, Michael Heseltine. Victory has never been sweeter."

Outwardly on our own; openly optimistic...

---

Alone again although not quite: we are open for business with the world. I still am not 100 percent convinced by BoJo but by God it makes a hell of a differnece to have an overtly optimistic and patriotic Prime Minister again.

Today his written statement is promising: "The Government remains committed in all circumstances to securing all those benefits for the whole of the UK and to strengthening our Union."..."In its negotiations with the EU, the Government will be acting on behalf of the UK Crown Dependencies and Overseas Territories: the whole UK family. The UK proposes to agree similar arrangements with the EFTA states." But...today's speech is outstanding.

"And - you know where this is going - today if we get it right, if we have the courage to follow the instincts and the instructions of the British people, this can be another such moment on the launching pad."

"We are re-emerging after decades of hibernation as a campaigner for global free trade.

"And frankly it is not a moment too soon because the argument for this fundamental liberty is now not being made...

...And since these notions were born here in this country, it has been free trade that has done more than any other single economic idea to raise billions out of poverty and incredibly fast." We do extraordinary things as I never tire of telling you. Tea to China, cake to France, TV aerials to South Korea and so on. Boomerangs to Australia - Nigel Farage to America. Then he came back of course. [Ows: Thank God!]

We are embarked now on a great voyage, a project that no one thought in the international community that this country would have the guts to undertake, but if we are brave and if we truly commit to the logic of our mission - open, outward-looking - generous, welcoming, engaged with the world championing global free trade now when global free trade needs a global champion, I believe we can make a huge success of this venture, for Britain, for our European friends, and for the world.

Very well worth a read of the whole thing, or a watch and listen (speech begins @3:25, don't miss Q&A at the end, LOL).

Plus another good read: Leaving the EU is a joyous expression of national self-confidence. For that, we have Thatcher to thank. (Conservative Home): "However, Thatcher changed everything. Her radical reforms, unapologetic patriotism, uncompromising will and remarkable character lifted the nation out of its post-war torpor and restored its self-confidence... 

"A British ‘economic miracle’ was being enviously mooted on the continent – a truly remarkable turnaround from the stagnation and misery afflicting the nation just 10 years earlier...

"Most important, though, was the national pride restored by Thatcher’s indomitable spirit and sense of moral purpose. 

"If Britain joined what was to become the EU in a moment of disorientation and self-doubt, it voted out as a confident, self-assured, optimistic, outward-looking and independent nation state.

"For this, we have Thatcher to thank. And as a delicious accompaniment, she posthumously drove a stake through the heart of her vampiric nemesis, Michael Heseltine. Victory has never been sweeter."

Official observance...

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...of Octoraro Orphie? Or is it Phil? Anyhoo, today is Groundhog Day: "The first reported news of a Groundhog Day observance was arguably made by the Punxsutawney Spirit newspaper of Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, in 1886"...not that we in the UK celebrate it, but we know about it. The only real reason I'm posting about it is the cartoon below, LOL.

Although I also notice the date and time and feel oddly excited. Plus today is the 33rd day in this, a Leap year, with 333 days to go...



Update 3 a.m.: Talking of The Donald, I thought this was interesting from The Last Refuge (CTH); I wonder whether the US media will ignore - much the same way as UK media have studiously ignored any good news re Brexit - the State of The Union address as they have done previously for Trump. The SOTU is on Tuesday: the 1111th day of the Donald's administration. The numbers again.

Official observance...

---

...of Octoraro Orphie? Or is it Phil? Anyhoo, today is Groundhog Day: "The first reported news of a Groundhog Day observance was arguably made by the Punxsutawney Spirit newspaper of Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, in 1886"...not that we in the UK celebrate it, but we know about it. The only real reason I'm posting about it is the cartoon below, LOL.

Although I also notice the date and time and feel oddly excited. Plus today is the 33rd day in this, a Leap year, with 333 days to go...

Update 3 a.m.: Talking of The Donald, I thought this was interesting from The Last Refuge (CTH); I wonder whether the US media will ignore - much the same way as UK media have studiously ignored any good news re Brexit - the State of The Union address as they have done previously for Trump. The SOTU is on Tuesday: the 1111th day of the Donald's administration. The numbers again.

Obsigned: ostensibly out...

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Image credit BOB in The Daily Telegraph, 31/01/20

1,317 days. Or 3 years, 7 months, 1 week and 1 day (interesting number repetition there) since we found out the result of the Brexit referendum. After voting to Leave the EU on 23rd June 2016 we are now finally - 'sort of' - out; as Kathy Gyngell writes at The Conservative Woman "We are however under no illusions. This is just the end of the beginning."



And from Raedwald, copied here (he says it so well)...

"Dear Ursula

Many thanks for the kind words from the floor of your assembly. The United Kingdom will also always love the nations of Europe - and those nations will remain our favourite holiday and retirement destinations. Many of them even use the same notes and coins, which makes it easier!

However, I should point out that we're not actually leaving Europe. Of which we're of course an integral part. And we'll be marketing our many fine comestibles products across the world as 'Food from Europe' as well as 'Made in the UK'. And we remain proud of our continent of 730m people, of whom some 460m are also 'citizens' of your Federation thing.

We'll have a year more to enjoy the madcap, mouth-frothing, carpet-chewing antics of your rantiest stars - Hof's histrionics, petulant posturing and insane rhetoric keep us all in good spirits and we enjoy immensely his little You Tube clips. After that, I'm not sure who we will have to laugh at - unless Labour have elected a new Leader by then, of course.

Anyhow, must close. Good luck with those criminal investigations against you - after all, anyone can accidentally wipe two mobile phones containing incriminating criminal evidence on the same day. If you're not in jail, we'll correspond again in eleven months.

Best -

Britain."

Obsigned: ostensibly out...

---

Image credit BOB in The Daily Telegraph, 31/01/20

1,317 days. Or 3 years, 7 months, 1 week and 1 day (interesting number repetition there) since we found out the result of the Brexit referendum. After voting to Leave the EU on 23rd June 2016 we are now finally - 'sort of' - out; as Kathy Gyngell writes at The Conservative Woman "We are however under no illusions. This is just the end of the beginning."

And from Raedwald, copied here (he says it so well)...

"Dear Ursula Many thanks for the kind words from the floor of your assembly. The United Kingdom will also always love the nations of Europe - and those nations will remain our favourite holiday and retirement destinations. Many of them even use the same notes and coins, which makes it easier! However, I should point out that we're not actually leaving Europe. Of which we're of course an integral part. And we'll be marketing our many fine comestibles products across the world as 'Food from Europe' as well as 'Made in the UK'. And we remain proud of our continent of 730m people, of whom some 460m are also 'citizens' of your Federation thing. We'll have a year more to enjoy the madcap, mouth-frothing, carpet-chewing antics of your rantiest stars - Hof's histrionics, petulant posturing and insane rhetoric keep us all in good spirits and we enjoy immensely his little You Tube clips. After that, I'm not sure who we will have to laugh at - unless Labour have elected a new Leader by then, of course. Anyhow, must close. Good luck with those criminal investigations against you - after all, anyone can accidentally wipe two mobile phones containing incriminating criminal evidence on the same day. If you're not in jail, we'll correspond again in eleven months. Best - Britain."