So Gordon's signalled there's going to be a time table for withdrawal in Afghanistan setup in January. This is of course complete bullshit and another one of Brown's pathetic 'dividing lines' (and probably trying to cosy up to the libdems in a potential hung parliament situation).
Of course, like all of his famous dividing lines, Brown finds himself squarely on the wrong side. If we start to pull out now, we are admitting defeat, all our soldiers deaths will have been for nothing, Afghanistan will fall into the talibans hands and consequently so will much of Pakistan.
Or we could go the other way, take the fight to the talib. If you want to win the peace you have to win the war. All the nation building nonsense can wait until the opposition has been smashed. And yes, those helicopters next year will be nice Gord, they would have been nicer a couple of years back...y'know, when they were asked for.
Monday 16 November 2009
The politics of the possible
Forgive me dear blogreaders, for I have sinned...it has been 12 days since my last blogpost.
But I've had a good excuse with a combination of hardwork and some worldclass carousing taking place (I would divulge bet a gentleman never tells!). But also, I haven't been sure what to write about. Though slowly but surely a thought has been worming it's way into my brain. I read an interview with Cameron a few weeks ago when he said something that struck a chord in me. He said the biggest thing that spurred him on was the fear of failure, not the wide eyed optimism of Blair or more recently the 'audacity of hope' of THE ONE (tm). And not the inate belief in one's own genius like the terribly ill-suited leader of UK plc we have at present. And I realised something. He was bloody right...again (Funny how that keeps happening). I don't want a leader who thinks he (and only He!) can save the world or that he knows better than everyone else. I want a leader who thinks things through, who questions whether a decision is going to come back to haunt him, who doesn't rely on blind faith. I want a leader who wants to deal in the achievable, who will work hard for his successes but work equally hard to minimise the losses. Someone who doesn't believe in pipedreams but is happy living in reality. I want the politics of the possible...I want David Cameron (But not in a gay way).
PS.
Anyone who hasn't seen it yet, this is the excellent Cinema trailer from the TPA highlighting the phenomenal waste in th EU system. Anyone who wants to see Britain leave the EU take note...it is the economic argument that will decide it (The country doesn't give a monkeys about the social agenda there), so get your bleeding calculators out and prove your case.
But I've had a good excuse with a combination of hardwork and some worldclass carousing taking place (I would divulge bet a gentleman never tells!). But also, I haven't been sure what to write about. Though slowly but surely a thought has been worming it's way into my brain. I read an interview with Cameron a few weeks ago when he said something that struck a chord in me. He said the biggest thing that spurred him on was the fear of failure, not the wide eyed optimism of Blair or more recently the 'audacity of hope' of THE ONE (tm). And not the inate belief in one's own genius like the terribly ill-suited leader of UK plc we have at present. And I realised something. He was bloody right...again (Funny how that keeps happening). I don't want a leader who thinks he (and only He!) can save the world or that he knows better than everyone else. I want a leader who thinks things through, who questions whether a decision is going to come back to haunt him, who doesn't rely on blind faith. I want a leader who wants to deal in the achievable, who will work hard for his successes but work equally hard to minimise the losses. Someone who doesn't believe in pipedreams but is happy living in reality. I want the politics of the possible...I want David Cameron (But not in a gay way).
PS.
Anyone who hasn't seen it yet, this is the excellent Cinema trailer from the TPA highlighting the phenomenal waste in th EU system. Anyone who wants to see Britain leave the EU take note...it is the economic argument that will decide it (The country doesn't give a monkeys about the social agenda there), so get your bleeding calculators out and prove your case.
Wednesday 4 November 2009
Go...allez...Los!
Like all the other 70,000+ people who signed the petition to get the Prime Minister to resign I received an e-mail today with No. 10's response
Nice try (Though seriously deluded!) but we didn't ask that. All we asked was that you kindly go..leave...take a running jump. Now stop fucking about and leave...Pergi....Sayonara!
The Prime Minister is completely focussed on restoring the economy, getting people back to work and improving standards in public services. As the Prime Minister has consistently said, he is determined to build a stronger, fairer, better Britain for all.
Nice try (Though seriously deluded!) but we didn't ask that. All we asked was that you kindly go..leave...take a running jump. Now stop fucking about and leave...Pergi....Sayonara!
Tuesday 3 November 2009
Euroscepticism with a dose of reality.
'Cameron lied to us on the Lisbon referendum'
They promised...we must have our say!'
Yadda, yadda, yadda.
I'm a Eurosceptic. I want to trade with Europe, I just don't want them to tell me what to do (One unelected dictator is enough for anyone). But harping on about having a referendum will be pointless. By the time a conservative government takes power this treaty will have been in force for months. So what is the point in having a referendum on a Treaty that cannot be un-ratified? Have we really got the cash to waste on such a pyrrhic gesture? Now there are those of you who are of the better off out persuasion who want a referendum on being in the EU altogether. Now I wouldn't entirely be opposed to this but what you guys need to is make the economic argument for this. Now, how much would we lose in trade from EU countries? Our biggest trade partners in th EEC area are Holland, The Icelandics and the bog stompers to the west. Could this trading loss be made up by reaching an agreement with NAFTA and re-establishing our trade with the commonwealth (EU rules prevent us from using our historic advantage here)? If we went would the Irish follow? These are the questions that need to be answered.
But Cameron and HAgue are taking the right approach for now, they can't stop a treaty already in existence but they can fight to repatriate powers. But if the economic argument proved to be beneficial they'd drop the EU like a bucket of rancid shit. So find these figures, make the succesful argument. You'll be surprised how much Europe will concede to us if they thought they were in line for a 'spanish archer'. Who else is going to stop a Russian expanionist push this century when resources become scarce? The Germans, Italians, French (stop sniggering at the back!)? Never forget, they need us far more than we'll ever need them and we'll do alright.
A conservative government's first order of business should be getting the rebate back. And then they should move on from there.
They promised...we must have our say!'
Yadda, yadda, yadda.
I'm a Eurosceptic. I want to trade with Europe, I just don't want them to tell me what to do (One unelected dictator is enough for anyone). But harping on about having a referendum will be pointless. By the time a conservative government takes power this treaty will have been in force for months. So what is the point in having a referendum on a Treaty that cannot be un-ratified? Have we really got the cash to waste on such a pyrrhic gesture? Now there are those of you who are of the better off out persuasion who want a referendum on being in the EU altogether. Now I wouldn't entirely be opposed to this but what you guys need to is make the economic argument for this. Now, how much would we lose in trade from EU countries? Our biggest trade partners in th EEC area are Holland, The Icelandics and the bog stompers to the west. Could this trading loss be made up by reaching an agreement with NAFTA and re-establishing our trade with the commonwealth (EU rules prevent us from using our historic advantage here)? If we went would the Irish follow? These are the questions that need to be answered.
But Cameron and HAgue are taking the right approach for now, they can't stop a treaty already in existence but they can fight to repatriate powers. But if the economic argument proved to be beneficial they'd drop the EU like a bucket of rancid shit. So find these figures, make the succesful argument. You'll be surprised how much Europe will concede to us if they thought they were in line for a 'spanish archer'. Who else is going to stop a Russian expanionist push this century when resources become scarce? The Germans, Italians, French (stop sniggering at the back!)? Never forget, they need us far more than we'll ever need them and we'll do alright.
A conservative government's first order of business should be getting the rebate back. And then they should move on from there.
Sunday 1 November 2009
In praise of moneygrabbing capitalism
Hail, fellow bloggers. I know posting has been a little light on this front lately. I've been busy with my new job for the last month and that's the reason behind this post.
I'm a believer in free market economics. I believe that if you work hard and are succesful, you should be justly rewarded. Thank the maker that my managing director feels the same way!
I'm a numismatist (trader of rare and collectible coins if you don't know the term), I sell everything from Sovereigns, to Guineas, Unites, Krugerrands, to coins dating back to ancient greece. I've only been doing it from the end of September but I've been extremely successful and owing to having a wide historical knowledge have built up a good rapport and reputation with a number of clients. Now my boss is a smart man. When I make money, he makes money...and he likes to make money. With this in mind, he's offered me a quick promotion moving to another team that specialises in supplying the higher-end of the coin collecting spectrum to really serious collectors. Why is he doing this, to maximise his return of course. I will see the commission I make increase fourfold for every pound a customer spends and he in turn will also see increased profits. A win-win situation for both...but an ethos totally at odds with Labour's politics of envy. Surely for the country having someone like me working hard and making cash off my own skills and knowledge is better than having someone who is forced to stay on the dole because they're better off than if they worked a low-wage job. Touch wood that we'll get a government at the next election who appreciates succesful endeavour and will seek to promote it.
And me? I was going to have a bottle of sparkling Cava on ice to toast Labour's demise at the election. Given my new situation I may make it a bottle of Pol Roger Winston Churchill and I'm sure the old dog would have approved heartily!
I'm a believer in free market economics. I believe that if you work hard and are succesful, you should be justly rewarded. Thank the maker that my managing director feels the same way!
I'm a numismatist (trader of rare and collectible coins if you don't know the term), I sell everything from Sovereigns, to Guineas, Unites, Krugerrands, to coins dating back to ancient greece. I've only been doing it from the end of September but I've been extremely successful and owing to having a wide historical knowledge have built up a good rapport and reputation with a number of clients. Now my boss is a smart man. When I make money, he makes money...and he likes to make money. With this in mind, he's offered me a quick promotion moving to another team that specialises in supplying the higher-end of the coin collecting spectrum to really serious collectors. Why is he doing this, to maximise his return of course. I will see the commission I make increase fourfold for every pound a customer spends and he in turn will also see increased profits. A win-win situation for both...but an ethos totally at odds with Labour's politics of envy. Surely for the country having someone like me working hard and making cash off my own skills and knowledge is better than having someone who is forced to stay on the dole because they're better off than if they worked a low-wage job. Touch wood that we'll get a government at the next election who appreciates succesful endeavour and will seek to promote it.
And me? I was going to have a bottle of sparkling Cava on ice to toast Labour's demise at the election. Given my new situation I may make it a bottle of Pol Roger Winston Churchill and I'm sure the old dog would have approved heartily!
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