What's in the News? 2.0

[Callie Del Noire]

Figured a little levity was needed. The week has been bad for a lot of folks

[Haibane]

Mostly Republican lawyers.

[Haibane]

It's pathetic. We've had three ... nearly four years to sort this out and with three weeks to go they still haven't agreed. Idiots.

By this stage it would be better to slam the door and say enough is enough then go back after 1st Jan. and discuss any changes that might be possible/practical in the future, but businesses need clarity now, (well, actually for effective business planning they needed it a year ago) not at five minutes to midnight on new years eve.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-55248502

[TheGlyphstone]

It's pathetic. We've had three ... nearly four years to sort this out and with three weeks to go they still haven't agreed. Idiots.

By this stage it would be better to slam the door and say enough is enough then go back after 1st Jan. and discuss any changes that might be possible/practical in the future, but businesses need clarity now, (well, actually for effective business planning they needed it a year ago) not at five minutes to midnight on new years eve.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-55248502

This has to be the most drawn-out seccession in human history, I never imagined that Brexit would outlast the Trump presidency. How many 'final deadlines' have been passed by now?

[Haibane]

I can't remember. Its taken two prime ministers (three if you count Cameron) and so much bad blood and really quite nasty rhetoric between Brussels and London that I am heartily fed up with it. Like Trump's presidency undercurrents of really very unpleasant racism and xenophobia have been exposed. I don't really care what happens any more, I just want it to be over and we get on with whatever we have.

[TheGlyphstone]

What's Scotland been up to anyways? Last I heard they were considering another referendum of their own to leave Britain and stay with the EU?

[Haibane]

That's out of the question. They are part of the UK still. A second referendum to break with the UK keeps getting mentioned but for obvious reasons that's been back-burnered for the last 12 months. I cannot say with any authority what the real mood is in Scotland about staying in the Eu or leaving ... or rejoining it in the future. If we have an E member who is a Scottish resident who posts here then their information would carry more weight than mine. My gut feeling is its very much a baby of Sturgeon and the SNP and is more for political (aka power/greed) reasons than economic ones that will be truly of benefit to ordinary citizens. I could well be way off target though.

Both May and Johnson declined the opportunity for a second referendum in 2017 and 2019 when proposed by Sturgeon.

[Missy]

well I'm American, but honestly I think Scottish Indepenence (from the UKGB) is probably best for Scotland, noting I mean independence for the English crown, given the the Brexit plan is becoming more and more clearly a naked disaster that will leave everyone who goes along with it in ruin. Scotland leaving Britannia behind and sticking with the EU is a lot more sensible and will give them a chance to retain control of their oil fields in the North Sea, thus preserving their economy (while the Brexit economy continues to go down in flames).

[Mechelle]

As the United Kingdom, including Scotland, has already withdrawn from the EU, an independent Scotland would have to "rejoin" but as a new nation, after all the pain of withdrawal.
It's up to the UK government to grant a referendum, but the Scottish National Party will have this as part of their next election campaign, and they are very likely to win a majority in the Scottish Parliament once again. That's likely to be another political problem in the near future, as the last referendum was supposed to be a "once in a generation" event, but circumstances have changed with the withdrawal from the EU.
For what it's worth, I consider myself Anglo-Welsh, but do have some Scottish ancestry, and would vote for independence if I lived in Scotland, although I am not sure about the economy with declining oil revenues.

PS As I write this, I hear Boris Johnson's lengthy dinner ("More pudding!") with Ursula von der Leyen of the EU has broken up with no success as we try to obtain a deal over what should happen if there is a divergence of rules. I am sure the Brexiters and Boris Johnson won't blame themselves for this failure to obtain this deal which they described as the easiest in history.

[Haibane]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-55266678

Well, fuck. I honestly NEVER saw that happening. What a complete shock. 

[/sarcasm]

The criminal aspect of this is that despite almost 4 years of warning the British government(s) have really prepared very badly for what was easily foreseeable as the end game.

[legomaster00156]

Hasn't "time ran out" like twenty times already?

[Haibane]

Yes. That's all part of what makes this such a stupid joke. The clock goes "ding!" at 23:59h on 31st Dec and businesses need to have arrangements in place to function 1 minute after that, but Boris set a final deadline of 15th Oct (if I remember correctly) and then negotiations continued after that. Its just stupid; childish. We have had since mid-2016 to agree this stuff.

I honestly do not have a big problem with the UK leaving the EU. I just wish it was done in a mature manner. I think the UK should have set a negotiations deadline of no later than 31st June 2020 and beyond that planned for a no-deal exit. That would give businesses 6 months lead time and often that is not enough depending on your supply chain.

Luckily the UK Govts farcical ineptitude has been overshadowed by even sillier stuff across the pond.

[Skynet]

Oh hey, another QAnon candidate who isn't anti-pedophilia after all.

[Oniya]

Conspiracy theorists are buying router shields to block 5G.  Express confusion that their WiFi signal strength has dropped.

[Haibane]

"A fool and his money are soon parted." If stupid people want to 1) throw money away and 2) suffer a less enjoyable communications experience because of it, then let them, I say.

This the 2020 version of a snake oil salesman and people are still being duped. I love it. Its hilarious.

This paragraph though made my jaw drop:

"And despite some routers using a 5GHz signal, routers do not even use 5G cellular technology to begin with. Although routers do give off EMF and can use a 5GHz frequency band, it is not the same as mobile 5G, which simply refers to the fifth generation of broadband cellular network technology."

So these complete idiots think because some Wi-Fi router signals use the 5Ghz band, its linked to 5G? That's so awesome.

[Haibane]

I found this Daily Dot report on "Q" to be enlightening. Then again I think most people who are not wearing tinfoil hats knew this was going on already.

https://www.dailydot.com/debug/qanon-hoaxes-duped/

My view is that "Q" is simply an attention seeker, they get off on having millions follow their every word, no matter what they say. A bit like Trump really.

[Mechelle]

Hasn't "time ran out" like twenty times already?

I don't know the exact number, but you are right, and it's no surprise that the UK and EU have jointly stated (which is promising in itself) that today's deadline will be extended.
I have forgotten who it was but somebody said on twitter that this situation was like a man who had repeatedly asked a woman at work to have an affair; then, when she finally and unexpectedly said yes, a month later finds himself packing his bags and leaving the family home, with no idea what is going to happen.
Appropriate on two levels for Boris Johnson.

[RedRose]

Arabic audiobook heard, postmen call the police, building evacuated, anti bombing team sent in. This is so France. https://fr.sputniknews.com/france/202012111044912678-des-chants-coraniques-sortent-dun-colis-une-poste-du-val-de-marne-evacuee/

[Oniya]

Arabic audiobook heard, postmen call the police, building evacuated, anti bombing team sent in. This is so France. https://fr.sputniknews.com/france/202012111044912678-des-chants-coraniques-sortent-dun-colis-une-poste-du-val-de-marne-evacuee/

I took less than a semester of French, back in 7th grade - but am I seeing that it was actually passages from the Koran (unsure of context) that were heard?

[Lilias]

Imagine being this fragile.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-55292501

[Oniya]

In my four years of college, the vast majority of my teachers were referred to as 'Doctor'.  I had three or so that were not PhDs in their fields.  The doctorates ranged from Mathematics to the Dramatic Arts.  There were no medical doctors on campus, except for the guy in the health center.  (Amusingly enough, one of the non-doctors was married to one of the doctors - and they were 'Mr. and Dr. S--').

[Haibane]

I saw that article and shook my head in sorrow. We still have a long way to go.

From the article:

"A wise man once said that no one should call himself 'Dr' unless he has delivered a child," wrote Mr Epstein, an 83-year-old writer and academic.

Note the "himself/he" not "themself/they" as well... I suspect that is a made up quote, and if its not, it certainly isn't from anyone wise. Doctors who deliver children are specialists in a sub-branch of medicine and my doctor whom I trust with my life has never delivered a baby in her life. So yes, just terribly fragile old-man misogynistic crap. Just laugh in his face and move on.

[Skynet]

Another Not the Onion Headline: The GOP is holding up relief for millions of Americans because they want to make sure corporations have blanket protection from workers who get COVID on the job.

The death cult demands more Blood for the Blood God.

[clonkertink]

Imagine being this fragile.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-55292501

Jesus. Sexist bullshit, coupled with a healthy dose of anti-intellectualism. As a not-real-doctor, I've never heard of this happening to any of my male colleagues.

[Regina Minx]

Jesus. Sexist bullshit, coupled with a healthy dose of anti-intellectualism. As a not-real-doctor, I've never heard of this happening to any of my male colleagues.

I remember going to a movie theater and watching the adventures of a famous Ph.D. in archaeology. None of the dudes watching the movie insisted that he should be called 'Mr. Jones.'